MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The New Orleans Pelicans handed the Memphis Grizzlies their first loss of the season on Monday night, Nov. 2, winning 135-134 in overtime at FedExForum. The Grizzlies had arrived at 6-0, the NBA's last unbeaten team, and the result left them at 6-1 in front of a crowd of 13,322.
The game was tight throughout. Memphis led 62-59 at halftime, and New Orleans won the third quarter 41-33 to take control before the Grizzlies came back in the fourth to force overtime. In the extra period the Pelicans outscored Memphis 11-10, and Jeremiah Fears made two free throws with 7.3 seconds left to put New Orleans ahead for good.
Zion Williamson scored 25 points for the Pelicans, nine of them in overtime. Karlo Matkovic also had 25, a career high, and rookie Derik Queen added 20 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Trey Murphy III and Saddiq Bey each finished with 18, and the Pelicans made 25 of 30 free throws. New Orleans played without guard Dejounte Murray, who was out for personal reasons.
Memphis guard Ty Jerome had 40 points on 14-of-22 shooting, including five three-pointers, and his 15-foot jumper in the final seconds missed. Rookie forward Cameron Boozer scored 18 with nine rebounds and five assists, Jaylen Wells added 16, Isaiah Stewart 14 and Cam Spencer 13. The Grizzlies shot 51.6 percent and made 18 threes but turned the ball over 16 times to New Orleans' eight.
Memphis came in with a 136-105 win over Sacramento on Halloween night that matched the best start in franchise history, set by the 2014-15 team. The Pelicans improved to 3-4 and have won three straight.
What is next: the Grizzlies host the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 7 p.m. at FedExForum, while New Orleans hosts the Utah Jazz the same night at the Smoothie King Center. Raw 100.5 keeps a game page for each Grizzlies game, and the final score and next game also appear on the Raw 100.5 sports page.
Sources: Associated Press, NBA.com, Memphis Grizzlies, ESPN