Memphis Grizzlies surge in the third quarter, come up short in New Orleans
Despite an encouraging effort in the second half, the Memphis Grizzlies snap a three-game winning streak against the Pelicans.
The Memphis Grizzlies won the third quarter 37-24, but came up short to the New Orleans Pelicans, 111-104. Led by DeMarcus Cousins (27 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists), the Pelicans burst out of the gate in the first quarter and never looked back. The Grizzlies fell to 16-29 on the season, despite a career-high 31 points from Wayne Selden.
Player Grades – Starters
Tyreke Evans (C): Evans fell back to Earth in tonight’s game, scoring 12 points. He shot less than 20 percent in the game in 36 minutes. Tyreke was pushing a bit too hard in this game. He has been the leader of this team so far this season, but it seems to be wearing on him, physically.
JaMychal Green (Incomplete): JaMychal Green was putting together a great game, but he left during the third quarter with an ankle injury. Before his injury, JaMychal pulled down 16 rebounds.
Marc Gasol (B): Marc played the role of facilitator tonight, leading the team with seven assists. He had another poor shooting game, but he looked engaged on the offensive end tonight. Hopefully, this will be a trend moving forward.
Dillon Brooks (B+): After a few games of Brooks looking like a stud, he fell back to Earth tonight. He led the charge in the third quarter, however, and he continued to shoot well from three.
Ben McLemore (C): Tonight, McLemore put up a pretty empty stat line. Despite scoring 10 points, he did little in the game, and the ball movement stopped when he was on the floor. Every game McLemore struggles, his trade value drops a bit more.
Player Grades – Bench
Wayne Selden (A): An interesting note after the game, Wayne Selden’s career-high 31 points accounts for 19.6 percent of his career scoring. He saved this game from being a blowout with his stellar shooting.
Deyonta Davis (A-): Deyonta Davis may be the defensive future of the Memphis Grizzlies, but tonight, he showed an unstoppable motor. His effort on the glass was extremely noticeable, and he looked extremely engaged. This was one of the most encouraging games of Deyonta’s young career.
Jarell Martin (B): A team low in +/-, Jarell Martin actually shot very well in this game, but he didn’t show much effort on the defensive end.
Myke Henry (Incomplete): In limited minutes, Henry looked extremely raw, failing to register a basket in the game. A strong effort in the third quarter from the Grizzlies made the game a bit too close to give Myke enough minutes to develop.
Next: Absence of Conley has exposed Gasol's ceiling
Tune in next game as the Memphis Grizzlies take on the Philadelphia 76ers to start a three-game homestand.