Ja Morant #12 of the Memphis Grizzlies and Isaiah Joe #11 of the Oklahoma City Thunder compete for the ball during the first half at FedExForum on December 7, 2022 in Memphis, Tennessee. Justin Ford/Getty Images/AFP
Luguentz Dort ended the season with 24 points to help hosts the Oklahoma City Thunder break a five-game losing streak with a 115-109 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.
The loss broke the Grizzlies’ seven-match winning streak.
The Thunder won though without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey, their two top scorers.
Gilgeous-Alexander missed the game because of a lower back injury while Giddey missed the game because of a non-COVID illness.
Isaiah Joe added the highest 23 points of his career, hitting 5 3-pointers. The Thunder peaked in season 19 from outside the arc.
In the Thunder’s losing streak, the second quarter did its job, falling behind by more than 10 points on average for the quarter. Their last four defeats totaled 19 points.
OKC had an impressive performance at home when they beat the Memphis Grizzlies with a score of 115-109. Five Thunder players finished with two numbers.
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– OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) December 18, 2022
But on the second night of back-to-back and without Gilgeous-Alexander and Giddey, Oklahoma City took control of the second half, beating Memphis 39-22.
The Grizzlies were just 6/20 out of the ring in the inning, with Ja Morant missing all four of his shots.
Then Morant’s night took a turn for the worse.
He was unavailable for the second half after committing two consecutive technical fouls in the last minute of the second half.
Morant’s second goal came when Eugene Omoruyi was at the free-throw line with 43 seconds left before halftime.
Morant was turned towards the corner, seemingly speaking to fans near the pitch when he was called for a second technique.
Morant raised his hand in disbelief and smiled as Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins and guard Dillon Brooks argued with officials, in which Brooks drew a technique of his own.
Morant finished with just six points, the lowest in the season, when shooting 3/10.
The Grizzlies cut the 24-point deficit to 5 in the last minute but never took the lead seriously.
Brooks has scored the highest 32 points of the season to lead the Grizzlies, who have the lowest shooting rate of the season at 37.8%.
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