In a much more competitive effort, the Memphis Grizzlies gave the Western Conference leading Timberwolves all they wanted on Wednesday night. Jaren Jackson, Jr. returned to form and dominated two of the best bigs in the association, but it wasn’t enough as the Grizzlies lost 110-101. Anthony Edwards dropped 34 for the home team, showing once again why he is one of the great young stars of the league. The young Grizzlies continue with growing pains but showed a lot of fight tonight against one of the leagues best teams.
First Quarter
Whatever went wrong in Monday’s night game against the Nets, the Grizzlies did all of it right jumping out on a 14-3 run out of the gate. The Grizzlies came out firing on all cylinders and none more than Jaren who has been much aligned for his lack of rebounding. Jaren finished 1 rebound shy of a double-double, adding 10 points to his 9 boards. Everyone was getting in on the action with Santi burying a corner 3 and Vince with an incredible chase down block.
Jordan Goodwin added 3 assists in the start for Memphis and saw extended action throughout the rest of the game. The first frame ended in a 26-24 Memphis lead with KAT and Anthony Edwards pacing the home team with 9 a piece.
Second Quarter
The second quarter has been a nemesis to the Memphis Grizzlies this year, but this time the Grizzlies kept up with their young talent. Jaren added 9 points in the frame and GG scored 8 to lead Memphis with 19 and 12, respectively, at the break.
Jordan Goodwin continued to lead the offense in non-scoring ways, finishing the first half with 7 board and 7 assists. Having him lead the offense tonight was very efficient for most of the game. Goodwin looked smooth at the helm, even though his shots weren’t falling, distributing the ball to the hot hands. The Grizzlies clung to a 53-50 lead at the break, thanks to an improbable shot by Ziaire Williams.
Third Quarter
This time, the third quarter is when the road team started running out of gas. Minnesota finished the third quarter shooting 54.5% from the field and had a 3 point lead going into the 4th. In a huge shock to anyone paying attention of late, Memphis was dominating the glass, out rebounding Minnesota 40-24 through 3 quarters. Jaren had 13 boards, Jordan had 8, and Ziaire (who has been playing surprisingly well still) added 5. Ziaire would finish the frame with 9 including an incredible fade away corner 3 from the 3rd row.
Memphis also had 38 points in the paint, continuing their dominance of KAT and Gobert in these matchups. Jaren always sees red against Minnesota and puts in his best work in these games. However, Minnesota would take a 3 point lead to the 4th, 88-85.
Fourth Quarter
Santia started the scoring in the final quarter with a smooth reverse dunk to put the Grizzlies back within 1.
Jaren continued his scoring tear finishing the night with 33 points and 13 rebounds, but it was once again Anthony Edwards taking over the game late to lead Minnesota to the ultimate victory. However, we all know this is a developmental season, and what we saw tonight is promising for future role players and bench guys. Vince continued to show why he belonged in the Rising Star game, and if I may share my opinion a little, (hopefully) future Grizz Lamar Stevens continued to prove he is worth a roster spot on Beale Street.
Ultimately, Ant and his 34 points were too much for the young Grizzlies and Minnesota won 110-101. It was not from lack of effort on behalf of Memphis, and if the Grizz were fully heathly, I believe they would take Minnesota in a playoff series. The Grizzlies gave them a run with their future bench and no stars, Jaren notwithstanding. All Memphis starters, except Jordan Goodwin who provided spark in other ways, finished the night in double figures and GG added 14 off the bench. Once again, moral victories suck and it is hard to fine silver linings when you are mired in a season like this one. However, this one stings less than Monday night as the Grizzlies showed growth, future, and an eye on next season.
The Grizzlies will look to end this 3 game losing streak against Portland in a winnable game Friday 3/1 at 7:00 pm.