Grizzlies 120-109 Pelicans (Nov 29, 2024) Game Summary

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — — Yes Morant had 27 points and seven assists as the Memphis Grizzlies beat the injury-plagued New Orleans Pelicans 120-109 on Friday night for their first NBA Cup win in franchise history.

Jaren Jackson Jr. had 23 points and eight rebounds for Memphis, while Santi Aldama added 20 points and went 8 of 9 from the field.

CJ McCollum led the Pelicans with 30 points, and Dejounte Murray and Trey Murphy each added 21 points.

The win was Memphis’ fifth in a row, while the Pelicans have lost seven straight and 13 of 14.

New Orleans played without key players Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, the Pelicans’ top-two scorers, along with Herbert Jones and Jose Alvarado.

Takeaways

Pelicans: With big players out with injuries, the Pelicans relied on their backcourt duo. Murray, who called Wednesday’s 26-point loss to Toronto an embarrassment, held on with help from McCollum and Murphy, but rookie Yves Missi was the only other player in double figures with 16.

Grizzlies: Memphis tallied 72 bench points in its earlier win over Detroit on Wednesday and was already halfway to that total at the halftime break. While the Pelicans dealt with absences, Memphis had 11 players with significant minutes.

Key moment

The Pelicans had cut into the deficit by double digits in the third quarter, but a pair of baskets by Jackson and a 3-pointer by Jake LaRavia put Memphis up 15.

Key state

Memphis, which leads the league with an average of 30 assists a game, dished out 36 assists on its 47 baskets. The combination allowed the Grizzlies to win their first ever NBA Cup game after going 0-4 in the 2023 inaugural tournament.

Next

The Pelicans travel to New York to play the Knicks on Sunday, the same day Memphis ends a four-game homestand against Indiana.

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