Hustle fall to Oklahoma City to split series
The Memphis Hustle, the Grizzlies’ NBA G League affiliate, sustained a 116-87 loss to the Oklahoma City Blue on Monday at Landers Center.
D.J. Wilson led the Blue with 20 points (9-18 FG), 13 rebounds and five assists on 9-of-18 shooting. Georgios Kalaitzakis posted a double-double with 19 points (6-12 FG), 10 rebounds and three steals. Rob Edwards and Zavier Simpson tallied 18 points apiece. Scotty Hopson added 16 points, four rebounds and three assists.
Santi Aldama posted a double-double with 19 points, 10 rebounds and two assists for Memphis. Ahmad Caver totaled 14 points, six assists and four rebounds. Ben Moore posted a season-high 13 rebounds.
Oklahoma City broke the game open in the second quarter with a 23-6 run, giving the Blue a 54-30 advantage with 3:39 before half. The Hustle couldn’t get anything rolling on the offensive end in the first half, connecting on 1-of-16 3-point attempts to start the game. Oklahoma City carried a 59-38 lead into the break behind 10 points from Simpson. The Blue outshot the Hustle 45 percent to 29 percent in the first half and 43 percent to 17 percent from 3-point range.
Memphis cut the lead to 16 points, 64-48, in the third quarter but Oklahoma City responded with a 17-2 run to take their largest lead of the night, 81-50. The Hustle never got closer than 18 points the rest of the way, with the Blue salvaging a split of the back-to-back set.
The Hustle return to the Landers Center floor against the Stockton Kings on Thursday, Feb. 17, at 7 p.m. CT. Fans can catch the game on NBAGLeague.com.
