How Grizzlies, Desmond Bane 'weathered the storm' amid late-season swoon
03/26/2025 07:15 PM
The feisty, in-fighting Memphis Grizzlies shook off a sluggish start to dominate the Utah Jazz (140-103), snapping a three-game losing streak. Desmond Bane (21 points, four rebounds, six assists, one steal, one block) led by example and even sparked up a heated conversation with Santi Aldama after Jaren Jackson Jr. went to the locker room. Still, Taylor Jenkins praised his team's ability to stay the course after falling behind early, crediting a third-quarter defensive surge that sparked a runaway win.
Jenkins was visibly relieved and quick to the punch (68-second interview) afterwards, knowing full well these Grizzlies (44-28) need more urgency from the opening tip.
“Yeah, obviously a great start by the Jazz. They were firing on all cylinders in that first quarter and into the start of the second quarter,” Jenkins began. “We didn't have the resistance or physically we needed in their pick-and-rolls. A lot of easy shots for them, but I'm glad we weathered the storm.”
Desmond Bane and defense deserve most of the credit.
The Jazz (16-57) capitalized early on some defensive lapses, but the misfiring Grizzlies found their footing a few minutes before halftime. Once the momentum turned, there was no looking back. In fact, Jaren Jackson Jr. never needed to return after taking a shot to the face.
“We are getting what we needed on the offensive side even though we're missing a couple shots,” Jenkins noted, “but we made a great run at the end of the second quarter. Then it was just our resistance and physicality on defense. In the third quarter, (those) were so much better. That allowed us to get out (in transition), and our fast break numbers were better. We ended up with 38 assists. We were just playing with a different level of energy because our defense sparked us.”
“Heck of the third quarter. Guys bounced back. A number of guys were knocking down multiple threes. The ball movement, the collective play were just on a much better level,” added Jenkins. “It all started with the defense.”
As for which particular aspect of the defense was dialed up, well, it was noticeable everywhere to the coaching staff. The shutout on second-chance points was particularly notable against a Jazz team featuring the towering Kessler, underscoring the visitor’s dominance on the boards.
“I thought our point of attack defense was better. Our rotations were better, and we started blocking some shots. We limited them from a second chance point standpoint. I mean, zero (second chance points). That's a huge factor when we talk about Walker Kessler and a lot of these physical wings and guards,” Jenkins said. “So overall, the defense set a tone for us late in the second quarter and the rest of the game. Luckily, our offense benefitted from it.”
The unselfish play was a stark contrast to recent losses that had threatened their first-round home-court advantage seeding in the Western Conference. The win offered a glimmer of hope as Memphis aims to regain its early-season form ahead of the playoffs. “Weathered the storm” might be the phrase that defines this season given the injuries and inconsistent play over the past 70 games.
Memphis is 11-19 against over .500 teams and 33-9 against losing records. That is not the groove the Grizzlies want to be stuck in as the NBA Playoffs begin. Perhaps Desmond Bane’s dustup with Santi Aldama was just part of cleaning up the unforced errors and slow starts that have plagued this season.
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