Dorian Finney-Smith hit a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 1:13 left and the Brooklyn Nets outlasted the Memphis Grizzlies for a 106-104 victory on Monday night.
Finney-Smith hit a season-high five 3s and snapped a 101-101 tie when he took a pass from Cam Thomas and hit his shot from the left side in front of Brooklyn’s bench. After Finney-Smith’s shot, Ja Morant missed a spinning jumper with 51.2 seconds left and Dennis Schroder sank a layup for a five-point lead with 32.1 seconds left.
The Grizzlies got within 106-104 when Jaren Jackson banked in a 3 from the top of the key after getting a pass from Morant, who was blanketed by four defenders. On the next possession, the Grizzlies forced the Nets into a shot clock violation with 4.2 seconds left.
Following the defensive stop, Santi Aldama had a 3 that barely grazed the bottom of the rim and fell short right before the horn.
Cameron Johnson and Schroder each scored a team-high 20 points for the Nets, who beat the Grizzlies for the second time in six nights and won for the third time in four games. Finney-Smith added all 17 of his in the second half to offset a quiet night from Thomas, who was held to 13 on 6-of-17 shooting from the field.
Jalen Wilson contributed 13 and Nic Claxton chipped in 10 as the Nets shot 47.6 percent and made 13 3s.
Morant had several highlight-reel plays and scored 25 points for the Grizzlies, who were unable to win a third straight game following blowout wins over the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers. Rookie Zach Edey scored a career-high 25 and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Grizzlies.
Jackson added 15 and Scotty Pippen Jr. contributed 14 as the Grizzlies shot 47.3 percent, scored 66 points in the paint but were just 8-of-30 shooting from 3-point range.
Morant spun around Claxton for a nifty reverse left-handed layup for a 45-41 lead with 3:51 left, but the Grizzlies went cold for the rest of the half. The Nets took a 50-49 halftime lead on a 14-foot jumper by Thomas with two seconds left.
After Pippen’s 3 put Memphis up 78-77 with 1:57 left in the third, the Nets took an 83-79 lead into the fourth following two Schroder free throws with 7.2 seconds left after intercepting a pass from Jackson.
