Vegemite and Defense Fuel Win Over T-Wolves.

Colin Rafferty –

“I come from a land down under, where beer does flow and men chunder. Can’t your hear, can’t you hear the thunder? You better run, you better take cover.”

Your Memphis Grizzlies beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 116-110. A win over a team that has a better record than the Grizz, it’s a good start.

Jock Landale, take a bow, 20 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block. The big man from the Aussie Isle was on one last night, and it was a joy to watch.

Get this man a vegemite sandwich, or some shrimp off the barbie, whatever it is the big man showed up in the winter wonderland that was Minnesota last night.

He has taken some pointers from Cam Spencer as he was barking at the crowd after hitting multiple three-pointers to help secure a win for the Grizzlies.

Despite being down to only one primary ball handler, Vince Williams Jr., the Grizzlies were able to boomerang their defense and turn it into offense: holding the T-Wolves to 40% from the field and 30% from three-point land.

The Grizzlies were marginally better, but still better. They led in rebounds and points in the paint, something that has been missing since the loss of Zach Edey.

Sure, Anthony Edwards wasn’t on the court, but so wasn’t Ja Morant and Zach Edey, you have to get the wins while they are in front of you.

The Grizzlies did just that.

The energy was there and after going down early in the first half, but the Grizzlies were able to put together a 19-0 run to grab the lead in the 3rd quarter.

The Grizzlies are top ten in 3rd quarter scoring and are averaging around 30 points per 3rd quarter, this is a good indication that they make appropriate changes and have a ideal mindset coming out of half.

This is a stark difference between Grizzlies teams of past, where the 3rd quarter would start and the Grizz would fall apart, only to scratch and claw back into the game by the 4th.

Whatever you may say about how the season started, there is no denying that without the amount of players available, they have given it their all in the last few weeks.

Jaren Jackson Jr. has come back to form and is tearing it up, leading the Grizz with 28 points, 12 rebounds (yes you read that right), 3 assists, 3 blocks, and 1 steal.

He has been on a mission the past few games, just keep going big fella. 2-3 from three-point land and 10-18 from the field. He is using his size, strength, and soft touch around the rim to create for himself and others.

I may be crazy, but if the Grizzlies get healthy, they will be an incredibly hard team to beat going down the stretch.

Jaylen Wells continues his great shooting as he posted 17 pts, 4 reb, and 2 assists. He has now 7 games in a row of 12 or more points, he has found his rhythm and the Grizz fans are thankful.

Welcome back Brandon Clarke! His first game back since last year, right before Taylor Jenkins got fired, and he looked good. He was bouncy, had good quick moves, and was in the mix while on the floor.

He had 6 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 assist on 17 minutes of play and he was in the starting lineup. This is good news for the Grizz because, after an Achilles injury and a right knee injury, there was skepticism on whether or not he would be the same guy.

He looked like the guy we know last night, but will need to shake off a little rust.

Let me also quickly shoutout Olivier-Maxence Prosper, he only had 7 points and 2 rebounds, but he brings an energy off the bench that they need.

He is usually in on some rebounding battles and uses his feet well to recover on defense, he is not a finished product by any means, but his presence is felt and that is valuable to a team that has been decimated by injury. Tip of the cap to you, young buck.

The most impressive thing these past 10 games, 7-3 in that stretch, has been the Grizzlies defense, they have been able to hold a few teams under 100, and even when they eclipse that number the Grizzlies have held them to under 120 in 6 of those games.

The team seems to have bought in more to head coach Toumas Iisalo’s system. This is good news, they are playing as a team and winning as a team.

Injury update: Ja Morant missed last night’s game due to his twisted ankle at the end of the Clippers game. I would expect to see him on the floor Saturday against the Wizards. If not, that is okay as the Wizards the worst team in the NBA at 4-20.

The Grizzlies will travel back home for one game against the Wizards and then off to OKC: With a possibility of the Grizzlies finally getting over the .500 mark.

The Grizzlies are now tied with the Warriors in 8th place of the Western Conference, don’t look now but they have found themselves back into the good graces of the play-in tournament, now keep stacking wins and get back into the secured playoff seeding.

Next game for the Grizzlies is on Saturday against the hapless Washington Wizards, the weather is supposed to be nice so go get your tickets, wear the bear, and cheer loud as the Grizzlies try to get to .500.