Grizzlies offense goes quiet in fourth quarter
The Memphis Grizzlies ended the third quarter tied with the Denver Nuggets in a heavyweight Friday night battle between the West’s two best teams.
While Ja Morant got a break on the bench to start the fourth quarter, sitting for nearly five minutes, the Nuggets went on their run. Morant returned to the game with 7:06 remaining, but by that point the Denver lead had grown to 10.
Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets kept pouring it on as they pulled away and the Grizzlies fell, 113-97, on the road.
The Grizzlies (38-24) kept the highpowered Nuggets offense under control in the first half by limiting their effectiveness on 3-pointers. When the Nuggets’ offense got going, Memphis simultaneously went into an offensive drought.
Denver (45-19) now has a six-game lead over the Grizzlies in the NBA Western Conference standings and a headto-head tiebreaker. The Grizzlies’ lead over the Sacramento Kings for the No. 2 seed shrank to one game.
Morant led the Grizzlies with 27 points and 10 assists. Jokic finished with 18 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists.
Here are some takeaways from the game.
Brandon Clarke injury shifts rotation
Grizzlies center Brandon Clarke needed to be helped off the floor near the end of the first quarter after shooting a free throw and suffering what appeared to be a non-contact injury. Clarke hobbled up the floor near halfcourt before falling down. He needed assistance to the locker room.
The Grizzlies ruled Clarke out at halftime due to a lower leg injury. Without Clarke, the Grizzlies mostly rotated Xavier Tillman Sr., Jaren Jackson Jr. and Santi Aldama between the power forward and center positions. Memphis started the fourth quarter by playing Jackson at center and using a small-ball lineup that included Tyus Jones, Desmond Bane, John Konchar and Dillon Brooks.
Masked Ja Morant looks good
Morant suffered a nasal fracture in the first half of Wednesday’s game against the Houston Rockets, so he wore a clear mask against the Nuggets. Outside of occasionally adjusting his mask early in the game, the All-star point guard looked comfortable with his new look. Morant aggressively attacked the rim and got teammates involved. He recorded
a double-double before the end of the third quarter.
Fourth-quarter avalanche
Brooks took on the assignment of guarding Nuggets scorer Jamal Murray. The two traded verbal jabs throughout the game, but Murray got the last word. With Jokic on the bench at the start of the fourth quarter, Murray got the better of Brooks and helped Denver build a lead before the two-time MVP returned. With Jokic back, Denver left Memphis behind.
What’s next
The Grizzlies will stay out West and play the L.A. Clippers for the first time
this season on Sunday night (9 p.m., ESPN, Bally Sports Southeast). The Clippers were trending up before losing their past five games. Each of the five losses have come against teams currently projected to make the playoffs.
Brooks picked up his 16th technical foul in the fourth quarter. If the foul is not overturned by the league office, he’ll be suspended for one game and unavailable against the Clippers.