Memphis held onto a 115-110 nailbiter over the Sacramento Kings after losing Ja Morant to his second technical foul past the midway point of the fourth quarter at the FedEx Forum on Thursday, Dec. 5.
With the Grizzlies clinging to a 98-97 advantage, Morant used profanity against multiple officials to pick up his second technical foul with 6:45 remaining in the game. The guard was angered about a shooting foul he picked up while guarding DeMar DeRozan.
In a game featuring a matchup between two of the highest-regarded point guards in the league – the other being the King’s De’Aron Fox – Morant exited the game with eight points on 2-12 shooting for the night. He also had seven assists.
The Memphis Grizzlies come together in a pre-game huddle to build momentum and energy before taking on the Sacramento Kings. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/Tri-State Defender) 
Ja Morant of the Grizzlies rises for a clean jumper, adding to his scoring tally during the matchup against the Kings. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/Tri-State Defender) 
Brandon Clarke of the Grizzlies locks in defensively, closely guarding Domantas Sabonis of the Sacramento Kings. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/Tri-State Defender) 
Marcus Smart of the Grizzlies shoots over Kevin Huerter of the Kings, sinking a crucial three-pointer. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/Tri-State Defender) 
The Grizzlies defense closes in as Domantas Sabonis of the Sacramento Kings drives toward the hoop, denying him a scoring opportunity. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/Tri-State Defender) 
Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins gathers his team during a timeout, emphasizing strategy against the Sacramento Kings. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/Tri-State Defender) 
Ja Morant of the Grizzlies recovers a loose ball under pressure and quickly assesses his options to keep the play alive. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/Tri-State Defender) 
Jaylen Wells of the Grizzlies drives to the basket and finishes with a strong layup against the Kings’ defense. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/Tri-State Defender)
“I thought he was trying to get going…just couldn’t get into the game. Obviously, a struggle for him. A couple of other starters were having struggles too. I mean, Jaren was having struggles throughout the game. Jaylen was having struggles throughout the game,” said Grizzlies Coach Kris Jenkins. “But, for our group, they built up momentum throughout the game, and that’s what we’ve been talking about.”
Statistically speaking, Fox got the better of Morant. The King’s guard scored 18 points, along with six steals and six rebounds – but the Grizzlies still came away with the win. Their record climbs to 15-8.
It was Memphis’ balance – and deep bench – that sustained the win. Seven Grizzlies scored in double digits – including four bench players.
The second unit was led by Marcus Smart, who scored 18 points on 5-9 shooting. The veteran guard also had five assists and two steals. Forward Santi Aldama also continued his solid play in reserve, with a 15 point, 10 rebound double-double. Forward Jake LaRavia scored 12 points, followed by backup big man Jay Huff’s 12 points.
“Everyone that touched the court tonight, we all played defense. They got some tough guys over there,” said LaRavia. “I thought we did a really good job defensively tonight, especially with our team defense and on ball defense down the stretch.”
It was a bounce back game for Smart, who went scoreless against Dallas on Tuesday night. His buzzer beater at the end of the first quarter against the Kings gave the Grizzlies their first lead, 33-32. He finished the first half with 11 points.
“Yeah, that’s the beauty of coming off the bench and having guys off the bench that can come in and give you good minutes when things start to look [not so good] or go south for us in that first unit. The bench comes in, and we bring the energy, and that’s what we did,” said Smart.
The starting unit was led by Desmond Bane’s 18 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Jaren Jackson, Jr. chipped in 15 points too. Jaylen Wells finished with 10 points.
Memphis entered the second half with a slim 63-62 lead.
After falling behind by seven points midway through the third quarter, the Grizzlies went on a 15-point run to gain a 86-78 advantage. However, it was quickly nullified after the King’s went on a 8-0 run of their own to end the period.
The Kings ran out to a seven-point lead in the middle of the third quarter. The Grizzlies went on a 15-0 run to get their largest lead of the game 86-78. The Kings closed out the quarter like the Grizzlies had been closing quarters. The Kings went on an 8-0 run to close the quarter and tied the game at 86-86 to end the third.
DeRozan’s 26 points led all scorers, along with sharpshooter Malik Monk’s 23 points. Kings center Domantas Sabonis had a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds.
The Kings 10-13 were led by Demar DeRozan with 26 points. Domantas Sabonis had 17 points and 13 rebounds. Malik Monk scored 23 points. Fox finished with 18 points, six steals and six rebounds. The Kings’ bench was outscored 60-15.
The Kings fall to 10-13.
The Grizzlies begin a two-game road trip at Boston on Saturday. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
