In this article
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Memphis Grizzlies made 9 of their 11 3-point attempts in the first quarter Saturday night and never trailed after the opening three minutes. Memphis beat the Brooklyn Nets 129-110 at FedExForum on the second night of a back-to-back, with seven players scoring in double figures.
The Grizzlies assisted on 34 of their 46 baskets, scored 58 bench points, and turned 16 Brooklyn turnovers into 30 points. Memphis played without six players, including Zach Edey, Ty Jerome, and Jerami Grant. Brooklyn was without leading scorer Michael Porter Jr., a late scratch for personal reasons.
Memphis improved to 9-4 one night after a 142-111 win at New Orleans. Brooklyn fell to 3-9.
Cedric Coward led Memphis with 23 points and 12 rebounds on 7-of-13 shooting and added 4 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. Taylor Hendricks scored a career-high 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting off the bench, Javon Small added 19, and Cam Spencer had 17 points and 8 assists and made all three of his 3-point attempts. Cameron Boozer finished with 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists, and Isaiah Stewart and Olivier-Maxence Prosper scored 11 apiece.
Julius Randle led Brooklyn with 22 points, 5 assists, and 3 steals. Day’Ron Sharpe had 16 points and 11 rebounds, 9 of them offensive.
Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo was asked whether Memphis brought all-hands-on-deck energy, from the coaching staff to the bench to the starters, through the start of the game.
“Yeah, absolutely. Really, really fantastic performance by our guys. In the beginning, we were hitting basically every shot, but what I was very pleased was we had a clear idea about how to attack in each situation. We created open looks, and then guys knocked those down, and they were a practice shot for our guys. So that was very good,” Iisalo said.
“And a couple of things, you know, we can do better, offensive rebounding with the lineups today. Something’s got to give. But what I liked was we were able to then punish in transition when Brooklyn did attack the glass,” Iisalo continued.
Memphis Grizzlies Make 9 Of 11 From Three In The First Quarter
Brooklyn led 7-5 on a Noah Clowney floater before Coward’s step-back 3-pointer put Memphis ahead for good with 9:31 left in the first quarter. Spencer followed with a 3-pointer and a pull-up jumper for a 13-7 lead. Spencer’s second 3-pointer of the quarter made it 35-17 with 2:47 left, and Memphis led 38-23 after one. Coward had 9 points in the period, all on 3-pointers.
Brooklyn closed within 55-45 on an 8-0 run in the second quarter, with Egor Demin and Mikel Brown Jr. hitting 3-pointers. Coward stopped it with a 26-foot pull-up, and Spencer’s 26-foot pull-up at the horn gave Memphis its 13th 3-pointer of the half and a 71-54 lead at the break.
Coward played 32 minutes and grabbed 9 defensive rebounds. Iisalo was asked what Coward’s ability to move between roles, defensively and offensively, unlocks for Memphis.
“But what I like, what I like about Cedric is that he’s able to, like you said, go into many, many different roles. He can be a screener. He can be a handler. He’s terrific in transition, pushing it up or sprinting the wing for open threes. Has rebounded the ball tremendously well, and like you said, defensively, the weak-side rim protection that he offers at the position two is probably the best in the league for anyone,” Iisalo said.
“And then the rebounding has also been extremely high level, and those are very rare qualities for a two guard to possess. And then he has that well-rounded offensive game. He’s still a young player that didn’t play a lot of high-level college basketball and has one year of NBA experience, so he can still get a lot better,” Iisalo continued.
Grizzlies Answer Brooklyn’s Third-Quarter Push With A 16-1 Run
Randle’s step-back 3-pointer with 5:12 left in the third quarter cut the deficit to 85-77. Memphis answered with a 16-1 run. Hendricks scored 6 points in it, including a three-point play and a running dunk, Kris Murray hit a 3-pointer, Small finished an alley-oop from Coward, and Coward scored 5. Hendricks’ dunk with 39 seconds left made it 101-78, and Moritz Wagner hit two late 3-pointers for Brooklyn to make it 103-84 after three quarters.
The lead reached 26 on two Small free throws with 7:08 left. Danny Wolf hit three 3-pointers during a 15-2 Brooklyn run that cut it to 119-106 with 4:16 remaining before Coward ended the run with a tip dunk.
Clowney scored 15 but went 3-of-11 from three, Wolf scored 14 on 4-of-8 from deep, and Demin, Nolan Traore, and Wagner each scored in double figures. The Nets grabbed 19 offensive rebounds to Memphis’ 13 and went 17-of-46 from three.
Porter watched from the bench. Nets coach Jordi Fernández declined to say when Porter might return, NetsDaily reported.
“No, we want to give him his privacy. Everything, it’s fine. So, we’re happy that he was here,” Fernández said.
Taylor Hendricks, Javon Small Step In With Six Grizzlies Out
Hendricks made 9 of 13 shots, missed both of his 3-point attempts, and went 4-of-6 at the line in just over 29 minutes. His previous career high was 21 points, which he scored for Utah against Memphis last December, according to Grizzlies Roundtable. Small scored 19 points and went 6-of-6 at the line. Iisalo was asked about the confidence the two have shown when Memphis has needed them in key moments.
“Absolutely, and again, we’ve used this term, but it’s testament to their hard work. We call them live groups, even on game days that they’ve played, they’re doing live play. And that’s one of the things we want to keep a thread going with the guys are still looking to improve during the season, and some of those gains that they have made during the summer, they don’t lose it just by watching others play basketball,” Iisalo said.
“They’ve been working extremely hard, and we have a ton of confidence in them, and they have a ton of confidence in themselves that when they step in, they’re going to be ready when their number is called. So very, very happy with that,” Iisalo continued.
Memphis had six players unavailable on the second night of a back-to-back. Hendricks talked about how the Grizzlies handled that in a video recorded as he left the floor.
“We could have made a bunch of excuses, but we didn’t,” Hendricks said.
Iisalo was asked how rewarding it was to see so many players contribute after the travel and the rest of Saturday’s circumstances.
“It is, and I’m happy for the whole group. And it’s also in the bigger picture, you know, like to start the season nine and four, and start at six and oh, then run into some difficulties, which always happens because the other teams, they adjust, and then comes the next phase where you have to then adjust. And I see also a lot of things we’re doing much better than we were doing in those first six games. But that’s also a necessity, because the other teams are also getting better as the games progress,” Iisalo said.
“And just the circumstances around this game, Brooklyn coming off of two off days, us being in a back-to-back flying, you know, after them coming here. I’m very, very proud of our group, and I think our group can be very proud of themselves of how they handle this,” Iisalo continued.
What’s Next For The Grizzlies And Nets
GG Jackson made his only shot, a 3-pointer, before leaving after 2:52 of playing time. Memphis did not announce a diagnosis or a timeline Saturday night, and Iisalo was asked for an update on Jackson’s status.
“Unfortunately, it looks like relatively serious foot injury. So that’s very, very sad for him. He was catching a good stride, and we, obviously there will be some further testing, but so far it doesn’t look very good,” Iisalo said.
Memphis also played without Edey (left ankle injury management), Jerome (right hip soreness), Grant (head injury), Scotty Pippen Jr. (lumbar disc herniation), Quinten Post (concussion protocol), and Richie Saunders (right knee surgery).
The Grizzlies visit the Washington Wizards on Monday. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. CT. The Nets host the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday at 6:30 p.m. CT.
Join the conversation