Well, that was ugly.
In the second sound defeat in as many games, the Memphis Grizzlies gave up 105 points to the Minnesota Timberwolves while only scoring 80 on the other side of the court.
The Grizzlies felt particularly strong the loss of starting center Lorenzen Wright, who the Grizzlies placed on injured reserve after a second MRI confirmed a non-displaced fracture just below his knee.
The loss of Wright compounds the Grizzlies’ scoring woes with shooting guard Michael Dickerson also nursing a leg injury, his a hairline fracture.
The Griz put up little resistance as the Timberwolves seemingly scored at will, shooting nearly 47% from the field compared to Memphis’ paltry 37%, and 18% from behind the arc. Also, the Timberwolves took advantage of Memphis’ lack of size with a 54-42 rebounding advantage.
Leading the Timberwolves was guard Terrell Brandon, who scored 22 points and handed out 10 assists. Forward Kevin Garnett scored 20 points and pulled down 15 rebounds. Center Rasho Nesterovic and guard Wally Sczcerbiak each scored 14 apiece.
For the Grizzlies, forward Pau Gasol led the team with 22 points and 11 assists while point guard Jason Williams scored 11 points. Those were the only two Grizzlies who scored in double digits. Forwards Shane Battier and Stromile Swift each scored nine points apiece.
The loss is a stunning setback for the Memphis squad who seemed to finally make some progress with recent wins. But as a 113-71 loss to Orlando last Monday at Orlando and tonight’s performance might attest, the team has far to go.
Memphis’ next game is against Allen Iverson and Philadelphia 76er’s who will be in the Pyramid Saturday, Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. In the two teams’ last meeting on December 2, Memphis pulled out their only road win of the season, 93-87.
