Short-handed Hustle Fall Short Against Skyforce

The boys were back in town for a cold Tuesday night rumble versus the undefeated Sioux Falls Skyforce, which ended up being an uphill battle even before the tip. The Memphis Hustle came into this matchup shorthanded due to the loss of Jason Preston, who signed a two-way contract with the Utah Jazz, and the Memphis Grizzlies abruptly swiping up G.G. Jackson and Jake LaRavia as a result of a season-ending injury to superstar Ja Morant that occurred over the weekend. Two very unfortunate circumstances that made a substantial impact on an already struggling Hustle team. The Skyforce took no hesitation in capitalizing on the Hustle’s downfall to advance to 7-0 on the season.

The Hustle were without their two leading scorers and one of their top facilitators this evening, and that made a great challenge for the guys from the jump. A tough and unprecedented situation that was made no easier by facing the number one team in the league. This forced the squad to go deeper into the rotation, play guys out of their ordinary comfort zones, and ultimately let things fly on a whim and see what would work—and to be completely fair… they did a pretty good job.

Memphis had a pretty good grip at the start of this game. They didn’t trail through the first quarter of action and were able to maintain a lead going into halftime before the momentum ultimately started to dwindle during the final quarter of action, as Sioux Falls went full force to seal the game. If you’ve been following the Hustle, you’ll know that this is an issue that they have faced all year. But tonight, we won’t hold it against them.

Jacob Gilyard provided another double-double with 10 points and 12 assists, Matthew Hurt put up 22 points and nine boards, and David Johnson was on a triple-double alert before ultimately finishing with an insanely impressive 24 points, nine rebounds, and six assists.

A very skewed rotation mix provided sporadic results, but I think the more that the team gets acclimated, the better the results will become. There is nothing easy about being deprived of three of your best players, especially when two of them combine for a large portion of your points and are the focal points of your offense.

Memphis will look to recuperate and bounce back despite its current situation on Thursday, as it is set to take on the Birmingham Squadron for the first time during the regular season. Tip will be live from the Landers Center in Southaven at 7:00 p.m. Cheer on your Hustle as they look to push back into the win column.

For tickets, call (901) 888-HOOP, visit https://memphis.gleague.nba.com/ticket-central, or visit the Landers Center box office.