New Orleans Escapes Memphis 135-134 Despite Ty Jerome's 40-Point Masterpiece

Ty Jerome dropped 40 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists and still ended up on the losing side. New Orleans survived Memphis 135-134 in a game that had no business being this close — and yet somehow was.

New Orleans came out swinging. Zion Williamson opened the scoring with a 9-foot fadeaway, Karlo Matkovic buried a 23-footer off a Trey Murphy III feed, and by the time Matkovic threw down his second dunk of the first quarter — this one off a Zion dish — the Pelicans had stretched the lead to 16-10. Memphis kept clawing back. Cam Spencer and GG Jackson chipped away, Cedric Coward hit a mid-range bucket to make it 20-19, and Isaiah Stewart's 24-foot three with 2:15 left in the first cut the deficit to two. But New Orleans answered every run: Derik Queen scored four points in the final 51 seconds of the quarter, and Jerami Grant's 22-foot fadeaway at the buzzer — off a Ty Jerome assist — made it 34-31 heading into the second. Queen kept rolling to open the second quarter, scoring on a free throw, a running pullup, and a mid-range bucket to push the lead to 41-31 before Memphis could blink.

Then Jerome took over. He had already been a factor — running the Memphis offense, setting up dunks, threading passes — but the fourth quarter and beyond is where he turned this into something special. His driving layup in the fifth period swung Memphis's home win probability from 29% to 47%, an 18-point shift that made this a genuine nail-biter. Jerome finished with 40 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, and for long stretches it looked like he was going to will the Grizzlies to a comeback win. He didn't get there.

For New Orleans, the story of the night was depth. Zion Williamson posted 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists. Matkovic matched him at 25 points with 6 rebounds, 2 steals, and a block. Queen added 20 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Trey Murphy III and Saddiq Bey each contributed 18 points. That's five players in double figures with genuine two-way contributions — and it appears to be exactly the kind of balanced attack that makes New Orleans difficult to game-plan against. Memphis, by contrast, leaned heavily on Jerome, and while 40 points is extraordinary, it wasn't quite enough. The Grizzlies got contributions from Cameron Boozer, Jaylen Wells, and GG Jackson, but no one else came close to matching Jerome's output. Seven Memphis players were listed as DNPs by coach's decision, which looks like it may have limited the depth options available down the stretch. New Orleans escapes Memphis by one, and that one point is going to sting for a while in Tennessee.