The Memphis Grizzlies have been starting fast during their five-game winning streak.
During the run, they have outscored their opponents by a combined 187-112 the first quarter and they have finished with at least 120 points in each game.
Memphis has won eight of nine games going into a road matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night. The Grizzlies scored 30 or more points in the first quarter in each of those nine games.
“We’re on a mission and we are trying to do special things,” said Desmond Bane, who scored 25 points in Memphis’ 125-118 win at Charlotte on Saturday. “We’ve been in a lot of close games this year, and I feel like that is the difference between our team this year and last year. We have been able to win those close games down the stretch.”
The Grizzlies led the Hornets by as many as 35 points before seeing the lead shrink to four points late in the fourth quarter.
“I was really proud of the guys. They stayed poised, they stayed calm and they stayed together throughout (the comeback),” Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said. “You knew (the Hornets) were going to go on a run, and you just have to withstand it.”
Charlotte missed 15 of its first 16 shots and the Grizzlies raced to a 23-4 lead on their way to winning a second consecutive game without trailing.
New Orleans also had a fast start and offensive outburst in its latest game, dominating the Toronto Raptors from start to finish in a 120-90 home victory on Monday night.
The Pelicans took a 15-4 lead, led by 12 points at the end of the first quarter, by 16 at halftime and scored the first nine points of the third quarter on the way to their largest margin of victory this season. They never trailed and led by as many as 34 points.
New Orleans had a season-high 36 assists on 45 field goals, shot a season-high 58.4 percent from the floor and tied a season high with 16 3-pointers (on 35 attempts, 45.7 percent).
“Any time that you can go out and win a game against a playoff team like Toronto, that’s well-coached, that before now had won (eight of nine games), it’s just impressive,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. “The way we started our defense, moving the basketball, trusting each other. All the things we’ve been working on and talking about the last day and a half.”
CJ McCollum led six New Orleans scorers in double figures with 23 points. The team’s leading scorer on the season, Brandon Ingram, had just 10 points, but he added 11 rebounds and eight assists even though he sat out the entire fourth quarter.
“He’s sensational, he has the total package,” McCollum, who joined the Pelicans in a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers last week, said of Ingram. “I look forward to playing alongside him for a long time.”
The Pelicans defeated the Grizzlies 112-101 on Nov. 13 in New Orleans. The Southwest Division rivals will meet twice in Memphis after the All-Star break (March 8 and April 9).
