Dubs Lose Late in Grind-it-Out Game Against Grizzlies

If Friday’s matchup was not hard enough with a short-handed roster as Warriors missed action, Saturday’s game became that much more difficult as starting center Kevon Looney had to sit out due to NBA Health & Safety Protocols. Though the undermanned Dubs hung with the Memphis Grizzlies as best they could, they eventually fell 111-103 Saturday night on the road.

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Nobody would expect a team to have a chance at winning, let alone competing in a game, after shooting 20 percent from the field in the first quarter and then 41 percent each of the next two, but that is what the Warriors did. Despite shooting 34.4 percent on the night, the Dubs held the Grizzlies to an equally rough 38.9 percent night from the field. The squad was never down by more than 11 points through the game as they hung with the Grizzlies to the very last minute.

Despite the odds stacked against them, the Warriors showed a level of tenacity through the second half that Dub Nation can take pride in as they attempted to steal this game.

During the third quarter, there was a scary scene as Draymond Green came in for a rebound off a Memphis free throw and landed awkwardly on his left foot. He laid on his back on the baseline, clutching his ankle. And yet the ever-competitive Green remained in the game as he played in noticeable discomfort early.

But, the Dubs showed as much grit as Green, riding a 15-7 run to the end of the third quarter and place themselves just behind the Grizzlies’ at 82-79.

Then the Dubs continued to push into the fourth as Nico Mannion started the frame with a splash followed by a nifty drive through the Memphis defense to give the Dubs a two-point lead.

Later, Juan Toscano-Anderson came through in the clutch and hit not one, but two 3-point shots in the quarter, the second of which brought the game back to a tie at 95 all with 4:43 left in the game. Jordan Poole, making his second straight start for the injured Stephen Curry (tailbone contusion), then made his presence felt as he too scored back-to-back buckets for the Dubs. His double-crossover pushed center Valanciunas to the rim as he laid it up and in, and then followed that up with a splash to bring the Dubs up 100-99.

But from there, the shots just would not fall for the Dubs. Meanwhile, the Grizzlies went on to score the next four buckets in the game to take a seven point advantage with less than one minute left on the clock. That proved to be just too tall of a task for the Warriors to overcome.

The Warriors received a boost for the second straight game from the duo of Poole and Andrew Wiggins as they were the only players in the game for either team to eclipse the 20-point threshold, scoring 26 and 20 points respectively. This came on the heels of Friday night’s game where they combined for 65 points.

Juan Toscano-Anderson also provided a boost off of the bench on both sides of the ball. He finished with three 3-pointers made on five attempts for 11 points with three dimes, while adding six rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

With all other centers besides Draymond Green out — Looney joined James Wiseman and Eric Paschall as inactive as part of the Health and Safety Protocols — sophomore forward/center Alen Smailagic drew his first NBA start at the five. He got the game started on the right foot too as he made his first shot, a 3-pointer from the top of the arc. Unfortunately his time would be limited by foul trouble as he drew three whistles in the first four-plus minutes.

Even with Saturday’s loss, the Warriors still finish their road trip with a net positive, going 2-1 after their back-to-back set in Memphis.

Now the Warriors will have some time to take a collective breath as they return home and do not play their next game until Tuesday when they host the Philadelphia 76ers, who currently sit atop the Eastern Conference, on Tuesday (7 p.m., NBCSBA, TNT).

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