Boston Celtics vs. Memphis Grizzlies Pick & Prediction NOVEMBER 7th 2022
When the Grizzlies battle the visiting Boston Celtics on Monday night, Memphis will face a team that's been sizzling hot from behind the perimeter.
Boston set a franchise record for 3-pointers in a game by tossing in 27 of its 51 shots from deep during a 133-118 road victory against the New York Knicks on Saturday night. Each of the nine Celtics who played in that game made at least one 3-pointer, the first team to do so in NBA history.
William Taylor
Jaylen Brown led the way with 30 points, Jayson Tatum had 26 and Sam Hauser posted a career high with 17. Those three players alone combined for 17 of Boston's makes from beyond the arc.
The Milwaukee Bucks hold the record for 3-pointers in a game (29), which was set in 2020.
"For the most part, I thought we shot great threes," Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said following Saturday's win. "Our guys are getting comfortable with the fact that when we run good offense and we have good spacing and we read the defense, we're going to get a great look. I'd say when you're shooting that volume, there's going to be some tough ones, but for the most part I think our guys do a great job of shooting the right ones."
Through their first nine games, the Celtics are averaging 16 3-pointers per game and are shooting 39.3 percent from distance.
"I think we were just real confident in the shots we were getting," Tatum said. "The way the ball was moving and guys (were) in the right spots getting the shots we want them to shoot, and we were knocking shots down, so that always helps."
Memphis improved its home record to 4-0 by beating the Washington Wizards 103-97 Sunday night. Memphis guard Desmond Bane led all scorers with 28 points, and Ja Morant added 23. Santi Aldama and Steven Adams each had 10 rebounds.
The Wizards took an 89-88 lead on Rui Hachimura's basket with 6:38 to play, but Morant regained the lead for Memphis by making a jumper with 6:17 left. That was the start of a 9-0 run that handed the Grizzlies a 97-89 lead with 3:44 remaining. The Wizards, who trailed by 23 in the third quarter, failed to get closer than six points the rest of the way.
Like the Celtics, the Grizzlies can also knock down treys. Memphis entered Sunday's game against Washington shooting 39.5 percent from behind the arc this season. Dillon Brooks matched his career high by making six 3-pointers in Friday night's 130-99 victory over Charlotte.
"We've got a lot of options (on offense)," Brooks said. "There's going to be a lot of open shots. You've just got to step into them and knock them down."
The Celtics were without centers Al Horford (lower back stiffness) and Luke Kornet (personal reasons) against the Knicks. It was Boston's second game in as many nights, and they have been giving Horford the night off in those situations.
--Field Level Media
Boston vs. Memphis Recap MAR 22TH 2021
Jayson Tatum scored 29 points, Kemba Walker added 19 and the Boston Celtics handed the Memphis Grizzlies a devastating 122-107 defeat Tuesday night near Orlando.
Tatum and Walker combined to shoot 17-of-23 from the floor as the Celtics (48-23) won their fourth straight game. Walker's 19 points were the most he's had in six games since the season restart. Gordon Hayward also scored 19.
Ja Morant had 26 points and 13 assists, and Jonas Valanciunas (14 points, 10 rebounds) also had a double-double for the Grizzlies (33-39), who lost their secured grip on the eighth seed in the Western Conference with their sixth defeat in seven seeding games.
With the setback, Memphis dropped to a three-way tie for eighth in the West along with the Portland Trail Blazers and Phoenix Suns with one game remaining, while the San Antonio Spurs are just one percentage point behind in a virtual tie with the trio.
The eighth and ninth teams in the conference will face each other in a guaranteed play-in series this weekend to determine who clinches the No. 8 seed.
The Grizzlies cut a 16-point deficit at halftime down to eight 61-53 on a three-point play from Gorgui Dieng with 7:43 left in the third quarter. The Celtics responded with a 10-3 run to regain control and maintained a double-digit lead at 83-73 heading into the fourth.
Memphis was back within 88-78 with just over 10 minutes remaining before Grant Williams and Brad Wanamaker nailed threes for a 94-80 Boston edge. The Grizzlies failed to get back within single digits the rest of the way, trailing by as much as 20 down the stretch.
Leading 24-17 after one, the Celtics blew the game open with an 11-0 run to begin the second quarter. Boston's lead surpassed 20 at 42-21 on two free throws from Wanamaker with 6:58 remaining in the half.
The Grizzlies battled back within 53-40 on a Valanciunas tip-in with 25.1 seconds to go, but a foul on Walker behind the arc with 1.1 ticks left allowed the Celtics to take a 56-40 advantage into the break.
Tatum led all first-half scorers with 17 points. Morant paced Memphis with 10.
--Field Level Media
- NBA
