When a team has rhythm and is in the flow, it’s clearly evident. And when one is not, well, the result is a lost such as the one the Memphis Grizzlies suffered against the Miami Heat on Wednesday night.
Back at the FedExForum after securing its first win of the season against the Trailblazers in Portland, the Grizzlies took the court in pursuit of its first home victory of the still young season.
It did not happen as Memphis (1-7) fizzled against the Heat even after Miami’s star shooter, Tyler Herro, left the game with an injury less than a minute left in the first quarter. Herro scored six points and did not return.
“We did not have a lot of guys to play well tonight,” said Memphis head coach Taylor Jenkins. “Their physicality bothered us at times. We were frantic. We could not get a rhythm going….”
Next up is Friday night’s game against the Utah Jazz and another shot at their first home win. Also up for grabs is a victory in the new In-Season Tournament. Memphis lost its first tournament game last week against Portland.
The Grizzlies faced the Heat with a fuller rotation with the return of Luke Kennard and Santi Aldama. New addition Bismack Biyombo also made his home debut.
Still, Memphis lost again and now has recorded four home defeats after only falling six times at FedExForum all of last season. It was the best mark in the NBA.
Jaren Jackson Jr. led the way for the Grizzlies, scoring 28 points. It was the third game in which Jackson has scored 25 or more points. Desmond Bane, who has been carrying the scoring load this season, was held to 15 points. Aldama finished with 12 points and Kennard had 13 points. Marcus Smart had 7 assists to go with his 11 points and Biyombo had 10 rebounds.
“We didn’t stop fighting at any point,” said Jackson. “We had good runs. We need to keep fighting. We let it slip at the wrong time. If there is a wrong time to take a lead, we may have taken it too early.”
GALLERY
