3 observations after Sixers squander 15-point lead in loss to Grizzlies

The Sixers led the Grizzlies by 15 points in the third quarter Wednesday night and walked away without a win.

Following a dismal fourth quarter, the Sixers fell to a second consecutive loss. The Grizzlies picked up a 115-109 victory at Wells Fargo Center, improving to 22-41 this season.

Kelly Oubre Jr. posted 25 points. Paul Reed had 17 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks and three assists.

Grizzlies big man Jaren Jackson Jr. recorded 30 points, 11 rebounds and six blocks. 

The Sixers were down Joel Embiid (left knee meniscus procedure), Tyrese Maxey (concussion), Robert Covington (left knee bone bruise) and De’Anthony Melton (lumbar spine bone stress). Kyle Lowry also rested following the Sixers’ loss Tuesday night to the Nets.

A Sixers official said that Covington is progressing in his rehab program with the goal of starting on-court activities over the next 7-10 days. He’ll be re-evaluated in approximately one week. Melton has “begun an offloading period,” the official said, and will be re-evaluated in approximately two weeks. 

Memphis is a highly depleted team, too. Ja Morant, Desmond Bane and Marcus Smart are among the Grizzlies’ key players on the sidelines. 

The Sixers will next play the Pelicans on Friday night in Philadelphia. Here are observations on their loss Wednesday to Memphis:

Outstanding first half from Reed 

Reed was back in the Sixers’ starting lineup after a three-game run off the bench. He opened the game next to Cameron Payne, Buddy Hield, Tobias Harris and Nicolas Batum. 

While Reed scored the Sixers’ first basket on a wide-open three, Memphis had its way early. The Grizzlies started 6 for 7 from the floor and quickly got into a comfortable groove behind the arc. Sixers head coach Nick Nurse used a timeout about four minutes in after watching Vince Williams Jr. grab a defensive rebound and cruise through the lane for a dunk. 

The Sixers’ first subs were Jeff Dowtin Jr., Kelly Oubre Jr. and KJ Martin. Harris slid to the five defensively, guarding Jackson. The immediate returns on that move were fantastic. Harris contested an air-balled Jackson jumper, then went down and drained a corner three over him.

Martin later took on the Jackson assignment and started very well, slamming home a put-back dunk and nailing a top-of-the-key three. Dowtin also drilled a first-quarter triple and the Sixers’ second unit began 5 for 5 from the field. Still, the team trailed by six points through a quarter. Second-year Grizzlies forward Jake LaRavia was the game’s unlikely leading scorer after the first period with 10 points. 

Ricky Council IV returned to the Sixers’ rotation, entering late in the first, and Mo Bamba checked in to start the second quarter against a Memphis lineup without a traditional big man. Bamba only received four minutes on the night.

Given the circumstances, Reed did very solid work in the first half. Reed guarded Jackson’s drives to the left tightly and played physical, high-energy defense. It sure didn’t hurt that Reed hit a few jumpers either. 

As is often the case, his hustle was exceptional and he was rewarded several times for refusing to give up on plays. After Jackson saved the ball from under his own basket, Reed fought to improbably emerge with it and converted a reverse layup.  

A variety of offensive sources

Dowtin logged 24 minutes Wednesday in his second game as a Sixer.

With the undermanned Sixers needing someone to handle backup ball handling duties, Dowtin stepped up and made plenty of positive plays. He posted 10 points, six assists and three steals. True to his reputation, the 26-year-old has looked to be an attentive, responsible defender and sensible decision-maker. Those traits came in handy Wednesday. 

“He’s had a journey,” Oubre said of Dowtin. “Coming from the G League, that’s a grind, right? For him to come out here and just stay poised and be able to do what Coach needs him to do, it says a lot about him as a player and as a professional. I’m really proud of him.

“I love the pace that he plays with. I just love how he’s composed. He attacks when he needs to attack, he gets guys open when he needs to get guys open. I think that he has a place in this league. I just want him to continue to use these games and gain more and more confidence, and realize that he belongs here.”

Oubre continued doing his thing as an aggressive off-the-bench scorer. He made a few bad mistakes — sizing up a couple of corner threes with his foot out of bounds, for instance — but the Sixers were generally glad to have Oubre in attack mode. Although Oubre shot only 7 for 21 from the field, he attempted nine free throws and hit all of them.

Payne and Hield both chipped in useful scoring and largely played the drive-and-kick, quick-decision style Nurse wants to see, but neither delivered what the Sixers required down the stretch. Each starting guard went 6 for 17 from the floor. They combined to go 3 for 12 in the fourth quarter.

Harris struggles and Sixers play a woeful fourth quarter 

The Sixers' bench reacted with a mixture of disbelief and elation in the third quarter when 35-year-old Batum leaped to slam in an Oubre miss and give the Sixers an 85-70 lead.

However, escalating foul troubles made it hard for the Sixers to blow the game open. By the end of the third quarter, it seemed Martin and Reed would each have five fouls. Reed requested for Nurse to challenge his fifth, got his wish, and was happy to have the call overturned.

Harris' shooting struggles were also a major reason why Memphis hung around. He dropped to 2 for 9 from the field late in the third quarter with a catch-and-shoot three-point try that fell short.

The Grizzlies trimmed their deficit to 98-95 early in the fourth on a Santi Aldama three. The Sixers were chaotic and not precise at all in their initial efforts to stop Memphis' run. Maxey's clutch shotmaking or Lowry's veteran knowhow would obviously have helped.

“We come out here, we don’t have Kyle, we don’t have Tyrese, and now we’re scrambling to even know what we’re in on the offensive end,” Harris said. “So that’s tough as well — just organization, I guess — tonight.”

Harris drew boos from the home fans when he drove downhill on a fast break and then opted for a kick-out pass that Aldama intercepted. Hield missed layups on back-to-back possessions, though Harris managed to tip the second one in.

After the Sixers went up 104-100 on a baseline Oubre jumper, Memphis scored the next 11 points. Martin and Reed both fouled out, the Grizzlies dominated inside, and the Sixers' offense remained disjointed.

They weren't entirely out of the contest yet — Hield sunk a three with 25.7 seconds left that cut Memphis' lead to 111-109 — but the Grizzlies made their late free throws and the Sixers suffered another dispiriting shorthanded defeat.

“I think we can learn a lot from tonight,” Oubre said. “We all knew that Memphis was missing a lot of guys, and so are we. It was a real testament to hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard, right? I just think that that was the whole gist of the game tonight.

“They stuck with it for 48 minutes and I think we kind of lapsed in the third. No excuses, man. Whatever may have happened, they just continued to fight, continued to hit and hit and hit. And eventually, it worked out in their favor.”