Bloodied: Injury-Ridden Mavs Blown Out By Grizzlies 121-107

Facing a slew of injuries to key contributors, the Dallas Mavericks faced another tough night at home following a 121-107 blowout loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

DALLAS - After falling in blowout fashion to the Memphis Grizzlies in a 121-107 loss at the American Airlines Center, the Dallas Mavericks problems at home have officially become a major problem. 

“Crappy game for us," Rick Carlisle said. They played extremely well, so I will give them a lot of credit for how they played. We hung in there in the first half, but we were not playing particularly well. We had some decent shot-making, but they carried the action most of the night." 

In two of their last three home games, the Mavs have lost by an average of 16.5 points to a pair of teams in the Grizzlies and the Phoenix Suns who are a combined six games under .500. 

Granted, both losses have come without the aid of their superstar, Luka Doncic, but the discrepancy between their effort and focus at home versus on the road has palpable in recent weeks. 

On Wednesday, it was more of the same for Dallas, with the Grizzlies owning the pace and tempo of the game from the very start, despite the sudden late scratches of key contributors (and theoretical trade candidates) Jae Crowder and Soloman Hill. 

Despite that advantage, the Mavs, who were without their own key cogs in Seth Curry and J.J. Barea, had almost no chance once the second half got underway, losing the third quarter 41-22, and trailing by 22 heading into the final frame. 

From there, it was mostly garbage time, as Kristaps Porzingis sat for the majority of the fourth, and players like Courtney Lee, Ryan Broekoff, and Justin Jackson got extended run on the floor. 

Porzinigis had a great first half, and ultimately finished the game with 32 points and 12 rebounds (and a bloodied nose), but it wasn't enough, as the young trio of Jaren Jackson Jr., Ja Morant, and Brandon Clarke had their way with the Mavs defense. (By the way, that's a third straight game with 30 points and 10 rebounds for KP.)

“His offensive rhythm is good," Carlisle said of Porzingis. "When he was hitting all of those shots in the first half, if you looked at the score it seemed like we were playing well. We had a lead and were close, but we were – in reality – very reliant on his shot-making and didn’t have a lot else going. We weren’t playing that well defensively. It was just a rough go.”    

Morant's 21 led the way for Memphis, while Clarke had 18, and Jackson added 19 points, six rebounds, and two blocks. Tyus Jones also had 19 points in 17 minutes off of the bench, while hitting 8-of-8 from the field and 3-of-3 from deep. 

Following the embarrassing loss, the Mavs (31-20) have a day of rest before heading east to take on the Washington Wizards in the first leg of a back-to-back on Friday night. The Mavs last saw Washington in their first game of the season, where they won 108-100 at the American Airlines Center. 

They will then head to Charlotte to take on the Hornets on Saturday, as they look to avenge their early January loss in Dallas. 

"We are going to have to do a lot better," Carlisle said of his team. "I am going to have to do a better job [of] getting these guys ready. It was just a very disappointing performance.”