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NEW ORLEANS — The Memphis Grizzlies put 10 players in double figures Friday night, matching an NBA record, and beat the New Orleans Pelicans 142-111 at Smoothie King Center for their sixth straight road win to open the season.
Memphis lost its NBA Cup opener 128-97 to Oklahoma City on Nov. 6. The 31-point win Friday evened the Grizzlies’ West Group B record at 1-1 and brought their point differential in Cup games back to even. Memphis improved to 8-4, and the 6-0 road start is the best in franchise history. New Orleans lost its fifth straight game and fell to 4-9 and 0-2 in the group.
Jerami Grant led the Grizzlies with a season-high 22 points off the bench on 7-of-10 shooting, and Ty Jerome had 17 points and 9 assists. Eight other Memphis players scored between 10 and 14 points, and the Grizzlies assisted on 36 of their 44 field goals.
Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo said he was super proud of the performance, two nights after what he called a tough one against Denver.
“To me, we committed to the things that we didn’t do so well in the Denver game and took the lessons and applied it today,” Iisalo said.
Jerami Grant’s Seven-Point Trip Breaks Open The Second Quarter
New Orleans trailed only 49-46 with 4:43 left in the first half. Memphis scored the next 13 points in 53 seconds. Taylor Hendricks and Jaylen Wells each converted three-point plays, and Grant hit a 3-pointer while Zion Williamson was called for a flagrant foul. Grant made the free throw, Memphis kept the ball, and Grant hit another 3 for a 62-46 lead. The Grizzlies led 70-58 at halftime.
Iisalo said that when Memphis sticks to what it practices, the basketball already looks really good in spurts, which he called very encouraging this early in the season.
“You saw several sequences where the ball is moving great,” Iisalo said. “Guys are making, I wouldn’t call it unselfish, they’re just making the right reads out of the situation. They are being aggressive, but they’re drawing a second defender and then finding the open teammate.”
The Memphis Bench Answers Saddiq Bey
Saddiq Bey gave New Orleans its best chance after halftime. He scored eight points in a 10-0 run, and his 3-pointer with 6:01 left in the third quarter cut the deficit to 80-77. Memphis missed six straight shots during the run, while Isaiah Stewart blocked two shots at the rim.
The Grizzlies’ reserves answered. GG Jackson hit 3-pointers on consecutive possessions, Grant scored on a cut from Javon Small, and Cam Spencer made three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt. From 80-77, Memphis outscored New Orleans 62-34 the rest of the way. The bench finished with 76 points to the Pelicans’ 27.
Spencer, who scored 14 and finished plus-35, said it started with the Grizzlies’ defense, with the stops and rebounds that let them run.
“We’re sharing the ball, getting it in the paint pretty early. And I think that led to a lot of our great offense tonight,” Spencer said.
Memphis kept pushing at the end. Small became the 10th Grizzlies player in double figures on a driving layup with 26.4 seconds left, and after a Pelicans basket made it 140-111 with 14.8 seconds to go, Memphis went for one more and scored with 7.3 seconds left for the final 31-point margin.
“It’s unique. Usually, that’d go against like the unwritten rules of basketball. But I think everybody understands we’re trying to get the point differential for the Cup game,” Spencer said.
Iisalo did not think Small knew he was about to become the 10th double-figure scorer. He said team chemistry usually follows winning, not the other way around.
“No, I don’t think so. And that’s one of the beauties of this team is nobody really thinks that way,” Iisalo said. “Everybody is trying to think of what’s best for the team. We went through a very difficult season last year, and nobody wants to be part of that type of experience.”
Pelicans Play Without Dejounte Murray After Trade Request
Dejounte Murray sat out with a left ankle sprain hours after his representatives told the Pelicans he wants to be traded. The team responded with a statement.
“We will evaluate potential trade opportunities that are in the best interest of our organization,” the Pelicans said.
Before the game, Pelicans coach Jamahl Mosley said Murray was not at the arena. Mosley said his focus was on the players he had available and on what they built in training camp and the preseason.
“How well we play is very important to me, and making sure that we keep up that standard,” Mosley said.
Bey finished with 30 points and 10 rebounds, the first 30-point game by a Pelican this season. Williamson had 22 points, and Jeremiah Fears added 18 points and 7 assists. Grant left for good with 7:36 remaining after colliding with Herbert Jones on a drive.
Memphis hosts the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT on the second night of a back-to-back, and Iisalo said he did not yet know who would be available. New Orleans hosts the Denver Nuggets on Saturday at 6 p.m. CT.
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