The Memphis Grizzlies went on the road and beat the Chicago Bulls 116-110 in the Windy City thanks to a career-high 46 points from Ja Morant.
We tipped you off to this game in our NBA Weekend Betting Preview and the Grizzlies/Bulls did not disappoint fans one bit. Morant, our pick for MVP, saved one of the best performances of his short career with the Grizzlies for a Saturday night throwdown in Chicago. The Bulls now lost four games in a row to the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies improved to 42-20 on the season with the third-best record in the NBA, but they’re the #3 seed in the top-heavy Western Conference trailing the Phoenix Suns and Golden State Warriors. The Bulls were denied their 40th win of the season. At 39-22, the Bulls currently occupy the #2 seed in the Eastern Conference after they were overtaken by the Miami Heat last night.
Ja Slays Da Bulls: Morant 46 Points
Morant finished the night with 46 points, four rebounds, and three assists. He shot 15-for-28 from the floor, including 3-for-4 from 3-point range, and 13-for-15 from the charity stripe.
“Every day he seems to do something extraordinary,” said head coach Taylor Jenkins. “You almost take it for granted, because Ja makes it look so easy.”
“Felt good tonight, obviously,” said Morant.
“I’ve seen too many of them, it’s kinda boring now,” joked teammate Steven Adams. “Ja is such an amazing player.”
The Grizzlies struggled from 3-point range shooting only 30.4%. Morant knocked down three treys, but without Morant’s efficient long-range bombing, the rest of the Grizzlies shot 4-for-19 from beyond the arc for 21%.
Morant outgunned Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan, who scored 31 points. The Grizzlies harassed DeRozan, who shot just 10-for-29 from the floor. DeRozan had an eight-game streak come to a halt when he failed to score 35-or more points and shoot 50% from the field. DeRozan began the record-breaking streak before the All-Star Break and it continued after the break when DeRozan scored 37 points including the game-winning shot against the Atlanta Hawks the other night.
Morant set a new season high with 46 points. He actually scored 47 points against the Utah Jazz in the playoffs last year.
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