Memphis Grizzlies vs Washington Wizards Box Score on Dec 13, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Dec 13, 2017

WASHINGTON -- Bradley Beal scored 18 points and John Wall had 13 in his return from a left knee injury as the Washington Wizards fended off the struggling Memphis Grizzlies 93-87 on Wednesday.

Wall sat out the previous nine games after receiving injections in his knee Nov. 25 to deal with inflammation. Washington (15-13) went 4-5 without the four-time All-Star. The Wizards returned home from a 2-3 road trip.

Memphis (8-20) has dropped five in a row and 16 of 17 yet stayed with Washington until the final stages.

Andrew Harrison scored 20 points for the Grizzles, who shot 38.3 percent from the field and had a season-low 29 points in the first half. JaMychal Green had 15 points and 15 rebounds, and Marc Gasol added 15 points and 10 boards.

The Wizards led 50-33 on Porter's 3-pointer with 7:59 remaining in the third quarter but didn't finish the period strong. The Grizzlies entered the fourth down 60-57 and took their first lead at 67-65 on a James Ennis 3-pointer.

Washington countered with a 13-0 run. Beal, who averaged 34.5 points over the previous four games, sank two 3-pointers in this stretch.

Memphis proved resilient and fought back to 83-80 on Gasol's jumper with 2:34 remaining but would get no closer. Beal and Kelly Oubre Jr. sank back-to-back 3-pointers for Washington.

Otto Porter had 14 points, Marcin Gortat 12 and Oubre added 11 for the Wizards. Mike Scott started in place of Markieff Morris (right hip soreness) and scored 10 points.

Wall started and played 28 minutes. His most significant stretch came during the second quarter after Washington squandered most of a 10-point lead. After Green's 3-pointer pulled Memphis within two, Wall outscored the Grizzlies 9-0 for a 38-27 lead with 1:59 remaining before halftime. He later showed plenty of agility by blocking a Chandler Parsons dunk attempt late in the fourth quarter.

Parsons scored 12 points for Memphis.

The Grizzlies committed 12 of their 18 turnovers in the first half and misfired throughout. They shot 5 of 21 from the floor in the first quarter.

Memphis also hit 15 of 16 free throws while Washington finished 12 of 24.

NOTES: Washington F Markieff Morris played less than 20 minutes and sat out the fourth quarter in each of the previous two games. .. Wizards C Ian Mahinmi (sore right knee) sat out for a second consecutive game. ... Memphis fell to 1-15 without injured G Mike Conley Jr. and 0-10 against Eastern Conference opponents. ... The Wizards host the Clippers on Friday, six days after losing 113-112 in Los Angeles despite leading by four points with 51 seconds remaining. Lou Williams sank the go-ahead 3-pointer for the Clippers with 1.2 seconds left. ... Memphis opens a two-game homestand Thursday against the Atlanta Hawks. ... The sides close out the season series Jan. 5 in Memphis.