Game Report: Warriors lose first game of the season, fall to Grizzlies in overtime
A plethora of turnovers caused the Warriors offense to struggle in the second half, allowing the young Grizzlies to overcome a 19-point first half deficit to claim the win in a tight, low-scoring affair.
Coming into the matchup with the worst defensive rating in the league and on the second night of a back-to-back, Memphis looked tired in the first quarter as the Warriors piled on 37 points in the first stanza.
The Golden State Warriors have suffered their first loss of the season, going down to the Grizzlies 104-101 in a thrilling overtime contest at Chase Center.
Draymond Green was firing in transition, dishing dimes on fast breaks which, combined with 14 points from Stephen Curry, appeared too much for the Grizzlies early in the ball game.
After the lead was extended to 19 early in the second, the Warriors second unit began to struggle offensively as the Grizzlies went on a 14-0 run.
When Curry and Green returned, things settled down slightly with the Warriors reestablishing the momentum. They took a 10-point lead into halftime, helped by an absurd one-legged three pointer from Curry shortly before the halftime break.
Having been well held to just seven points at the half, Memphis’ young star Ja Morant began to fill it up in the third quarter. The Warriors were unable to stop the third year man, his 18 points in the period helping the Grizzlies reduce the lead to 6 with 12 minutes remaining.
A Desmond Bane three-pointer gave them their first lead of the game with 6:21 left on the clock. From there, both teams struggled to get going offensively. A Damion Lee three (part of his eight points for the quarter) tied the scores at 98 with just over two minutes to go.
Incredibly, no one scored for the remainder of regulation.
The stars, Curry and Morant, each had their opportunities, while after committing a rare and costly eight second violation with a minute to go, Green recorded his fifth block by denying Jaren Jackson Jr’s three-point attempt on the Grizzlies last offensive possession.
On the other end, Curry’s deep buzzer beating attempt drew back iron, forcing the teams into five more minutes of action.
The overtime reflected what we had seen in the fourth, both teams struggling to find any rhythm offensively. The Warriors made just one basket during overtime, and didn’t score for the final four minutes. The Grizzlies weren’t much better, although a crafty finish from Morant gave them a 104-101 lead with a minute remaining.
Curry and Lee’s game tying attempts both missed the mark, allowing the Grizzlies to pull off the victory following a disappointing loss to the Trail Blazers the night before.