Sports Writing (USA), Jan 16 (EFE) NBA for Martin Luther King Day (136-106).
These unstoppable Grizzlies occupy second place in the Western Conference with the same record as the leaders, Nikola Jokic’s Denver Nuggets (30-13).
With basketball as spectacular as it was overwhelming, the Grizzlies had once once more a recital from Morant, fantastic with 29 points (11 of 20 on shots) and 7 assists in just 27 minutes since he did not play the last quarter because by then the victory location was already secured.
Bane was not far behind as he had 28 points and 6 assists in 27 minutes on an impressive 10 of 12 shooting from the field.
The Spanish Santi Aldama, coming off the bench, had 6 points, 5 rebounds and an assist in 22 minutes for the Grizzlies.
Speaking to TNT on the field right following the game, Morant stressed that the great chemistry in the Grizzlies is due to the fact that there are no self-centered or selfish attitudes in this locker room full of young talent.
“We have a lot of generous players,” said the point guard.
“We are all happy for each other’s success. We enjoy each other’s success,” she added.
Morant also explained that building a great relationship “off the court” helps things turn out well on the court later.
For their part, the Suns, who are still without the injured Chris Paul and Devin Booker, have lost 12 of the last 14 games and continue to sink in the West, where they occupy the twelfth position (out of the “play-in”) with a very worrying balance of 21-24.
The leading scorer for the Suns was Mikal Bridges with 21 points and 7 assists.
The team led by Monty Williams collapsed in the second half (68-41 for the Grizzlies), suffered 53.1% shooting from Memphis and lost the battle for the rebound resoundingly (52 to 37).
Josh Okogie had to leave the game in the second period with a blow to the nose.
FROM LESS TO MORE
In this game played in Memphis, the city where Martin Luther King was assassinated in 1968, the Suns showed a great attitude to start.
Very focused and determined, those from Phoenix closed the first quarter ahead (29-36) thanks to a 0-14 run in the middle of an initial quarter in which they reached +11.
Bane, with 12 points, was the only one who shone in a clumsy and poor start by Memphis.
The Grizzlies reacted in the second quarter with a resounding 39-29 run and, with 11 points from Morant in those twelve minutes, they went into the break with an advantage (68-65).
However, the Memphis show had only just begun.
The electric point guard of the Grizzlies came out at the restart with 12 points in the third period, including some plays typical of a juggler, and the local team surpassed the 20-point advantage following an unappealable 39-23 in that penultimate quarter (107- 88).
With the game already decided once morest a powerless and resourceless Suns, the Grizzlies booked Morant in the fourth quarter but did not stop stepping on the accelerator until they achieved a maximum advantage of +36.
