Ja Morant made back-to-back baskets in the final minute to lift the Memphis Grizzlies to a 127-125 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night in Minneapolis.
Morant finished with 12 points on just 5-for-19 shooting but came up when it mattered most for Memphis, which won the opener of a four-game road trip. Jaren Jackson Jr. led the Grizzlies with 33 points and eight rebounds, and Desmond Bane scored 21 points.
Donte DiVincenzo scored 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Timberwolves, whose three-game winning streak ended. Jaden McDaniels finished with 21 points, Naz Reid added 19 points off the bench and Julius Randle had 18 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.
The Grizzlies trailed 125-121 after Rudy Gobert made a layup for the Timberwolves with 1:41 to play. That proved to be Minnesota’s final points.
Jackson Jr. made a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 125-123 with 1:32 remaining.
Morant took charge from that point forward. He made a driving layup to even the score at 125-all with 54 seconds to go.
Randle lost the ball on the next possession as Jackson Jr. got credit for the steal. Moments later, Morant capitalized with a floating jump shot to give Memphis a 127-125 advantage with 18.1 seconds left.
The Timberwolves had a pair of chances to grab the lead in the final moments. Anthony Edwards missed a 3-pointer with 7.1 seconds to go, but DiVincenzo grabbed the offensive rebound and the team called a timeout for another chance to tie or win the game.
Edwards got another chance for a 3-pointer, but his shot missed again and the buzzer sounded to secure the Grizzlies’ comeback victory.
Memphis outscored Minnesota 28-22 in the fourth quarter. The Timberwolves finished the third quarter with a 103-99 lead.
Minnesota held on to a 65-64 lead at the half.
DiVincenzo scored 16 points before the break, including a 3-pointer off an assist from Edwards with 1:59 left in the first half. That gave the Timberwolves a 60-56 advantage.
Jackson Jr. scored the final four points of the first half to pull the Grizzlies within one.
–Field Level Media
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