MEMPHIS, Tenn. — — Dalano Banton scored a season-high 19 points, Jabari Walker also had 19 points and 10 rebounds and the Portland Trail Blazers ended a nine-game skid by beating the Memphis Grizzlies 122- 92 Friday evening.
Duop Reath added 18 points for the Trail Blazers, who led the entire game while winning for just the second time on the road against a Western Conference opponent. Kris Murray added 14 for Portland, which is now 2-19 against the West on the road.
“We did it together. It’s good to get that monkey off my back,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said of ending the losing streak. “We played so hard. I thought we played well. We We just haven’t managed to get a win in quite a while.
Portland players expressed relief at ending the losing streak and finally being able to enjoy a postgame. Many attributed the victory to greater communication on both ends of the court. It started with the tour earlier Friday.
“We stopped the bleeding and we did it the right way,” said Walker, who is in his second year out of Colorado. “We were all happy and smiling, so it was really good. I hope we can take advantage of it.
This was the first back-to-back match between the teams. They play again Saturday night.
While the Trail Blazers celebrated, Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins was frustrated with his team’s performance. He had very few positive things to say about any part of the match. He began his postgame remarks by saying, “It’s embarrassing. »
“Basically, they scored 80 points in the paint from free throws. There’s a lot of stuff to clean up,” Jenkins said. “They played extremely well and we didn’t have it. I played badly.
Jake LaRavia led Memphis with a career-high 21 points. Lamar Stevens scored 19 points and GG Jackson finished with 11 as the Grizzlies lost their third in a row and their 12th in their last 14. Jordan Goodwin was the only Memphis starter in double figures with 10 points, although he was 4 of 13 from the field. .
It was LaRavia’s fourth game back after missing 17 with a sprained left ankle. He missed 10 games earlier this season with an abrasion in his left eye. His previous career high was 13 points last season against Sacramento.
“I thought (teammates) were able to find me for my looks, and some of them gave up,” LaRavia said. “I had a good game, but it doesn’t really matter when you’re losing by 30. We have to figure out what we’re doing as a team.”
Portland opened the second half with an 11-4 run, taking the game’s first double-digit lead and eventually extending it to 16 points nearly halfway through the third quarter. Reath and Murray scored nine points each as Portland took the lead.
The Trail Blazers shot 79 percent in the third quarter, including 5 of 7 from beyond the arc, pushing the advantage to 19 early in the fourth — a lead Portland never relinquished.
Both teams are mired at the bottom of the Western Conference and dealing with injuries that have impacted their rosters. And their files.
Moses Brown, who hadn’t played since undergoing surgery on his left wrist on Jan. 9, returned and the Trail Blazers fed the 7-foot-2 center in the second quarter. He finished with seven points, hitting all three of his shots.
“I thought Moses’ minutes were huge for us,” Billups said.
Neither team was able to build a double-digit lead in the first half as both teams shot under 45%. Memphis was hampered by a dozen turnovers in the first half, contributing to a 51-45 lead for Portland at intermission.
But the second half made the difference for Portland, which dominated the Grizzlies 71-47 in the final two quarters.
“Everything went well,” Murray said. “Offensively, we were really good. I shared the ball very well. Defensively, I thought we played a complete game and didn’t let them run.
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