Mike Miller downplayed the Memphis Grizzlies’ blowout 110-63 victory over the New Jersey Nets at The Pyramid.
“It doesn’t happen very often and it won’t happen very often, especially against a good time like them,” Miller said after the 110-63 victory Saturday night. “We just caught them on one of those nights and we had a lot of energy.”
Bonzi Wells led the Grizzlies with 22 points, and Miller and Stromile Swift had 18 points each. Miller also had seven assists in the most lopsided victory in franchise history.
The Nets scored the fewest points of any Grizzlies opponent, and came within a point of matching their own futility record.
New Jersey’s locker room was closed for more than a half hour and loud arguments, often decorated with profanity, could be heard in the hallway.
Players griped about their 30 turnovers and what some considered a lack of energy on the floor. Players also could be heard accusing teammates of not guarding their men.
“When you lose by 47, it ranks pretty high up there as one of the worst ever,” coach Byron Scott said as he emerged from the locker room. “I don’t think in the four years I’ve been here that we’ve played that bad.”
But Scott said the team had a “productive meeting.”
“This is family … you’re going to have fights and disagreements, guys fussing at one another, the coach fussing at players and players fussing at the coach,” he said.
The Grizzlies ran away in the final period, building their biggest lead at 110-62 on a dunk by Stromile Swift.
Pau Gasol had 12 points and nine rebounds for Memphis, and Lorenzen Wright and Earl Watson had 10 points each.
Kenyon Martin led New Jersey with 12 points. Aaron Williams and Jason Kidd, with 4-of-14 shooting, had 10 points each.
Memphis started the final period with an 82-53 lead.
The victory was the fourth straight at home for Memphis. The Grizzlies rebounded from a loss at Miami that snapped their franchise-record six-game winning streak set last year.
Memphis closed the second period with an 11-2 run, with five points by Wells, to break for the half with a 45-28 lead. The Nets’ production was the lowest for a first half of any Grizzlies opponent.
The Grizzlies shot 55 percent from the field in the first half to 38 percent for the Nets. Memphis finished shooting 62 percent to 34 percent for New Jersey.
Memphis coach Hubie Brown said the Grizzlies’ 18 steals and nine blocked shots demonstrated their intensity.
“We were really working … We got them out of their rhythm, and they couldn’t get into their offensive flow,” Brown said.
