The Memphis Hustle hosted the Austin Spurs on Tuesday afternoon with the hopes of changing Sunday’s win into a winning streak, but the Spurs had other plans. Austin came into the Landers Center with a 2-4 record on the season and appeared to be one of the Hustle’s weaker opponents thus far, yet they surprisingly played an intense match wire-to-wire and ultimately stole the game on the road.
we will take dat. @Treballjay11 X @timmybuckets35 pic.twitter.com/omtnqtbBjX
— Memphis Hustle (@MemphisHustle) November 29, 2023
The Spurs were charged by a tremendous team effort on the night, as all players were involved on both sides of the floor. Dominick Barlow led the game in scoring with 28 points, but four other players tallied double-digits, including two scoring 20+ and Luke Avdalovic supplying an efficient 14 off the bench.
Everyone came to score, everyone came to rebound, and everyone came to play—it ultimately propelled Austin to victory; it really is as simple as that. It was not only an extremely well-orchestrated showing from the Spurs, but it was also insanely efficient, as all but one player finished with a positive (+/-) on the evening. The Hustle got extremely outdone, especially in the fourth quarter.
The Hustle struggled to do something that they have repeatedly done all year long… Close the game in the fourth quarter. The fourth continues to serve as kryptonite for the Hustle, and as disappointing as it is, it is somewhat understandable due to the lack of depth and play off the bench.
The team has had numerous games this season where it has been all gas for the first 42 and fumes for the last six, a hard pill to swallow for the team. The Hustle kept it within striking distance throughout the entire evening until the Spurs started to create space in the third before erupting for a 45-point 4th quarter; they outscored the squad by 21 in the period, sealing their unfortunate fate on the evening.
G.G. Jackson led the charge with 24 points and eight rebounds; Jason Preston had four points, six rebounds, and an insane 14 assists (with only two turnovers); and the bench combined for 39 of the Hustle’s 101 points. Ultimately, though, the Hustle lacked efficiency, and no single player finished with a positive (+/-) on the game.
With this 29-point defeat, the Hustle sink to 3-6 on the season with hopes of redemption in Osceola on Friday night, where they blew a 26-point lead the last time they visited back on November 18th. Hopefully, the Hustle will continue to regroup and move forward, taking games like this one as a lesson and seeing room for improvement and adjustment.
dunk em. @Treballjay11 X @love_loudon pic.twitter.com/2XyUcL2ij8
— Memphis Hustle (@MemphisHustle) November 29, 2023
Tune in and support the Hustle squad on Friday vs. the Osceola Magic at 6:00 p.m. live on Bally Sports and ESPN+ as the Hustle look to get revenge and secure their fourth win of the season.