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Grizzlies Outlast Pelicans in Overtime Thriller 133-128

Originally posted on Total Apex Sports | By David Desa | Last updated Nov 27, 2025 5:58 AM ET

For much of the night, it looked like the Pelicans’ party. They were sharper, quicker, and for a while, simply better than the Grizzlies. Riding the hot hand of Jose Alvarado, who seemed incapable of missing, New Orleans surged to a commanding 17-point lead in the first half. The Grizzlies looked lost, a step behind every rotation, a second late to every loose ball. The home crowd was roaring, sensing a decisive victory that would keep their tournament hopes alive.

But then, something shifted. It wasn’t a single play, but a gradual turning of the tide, led by the towering presence of sophomore Zach Edey.

Edey’s Dominance Changes the Game

If you want to understand the story of this game, you need only look at the box score’s plus/minus column. When Zach Edey was on the court for his 35 minutes of action, the Grizzlies outscored the Pelicans by a staggering 39 points. When he was on the bench, they were outscored by 34. It’s a statistic so stark it barely seems real.

Edey was a force of nature. He wasn’t just a big body; he was a black hole for rebounds, swallowing up 15 of them. He was a defensive anchor, a walking eclipse who altered shots and protected the rim with two emphatic blocks. Offensively, he was a relentless presence, pouring in 21 points, many on thunderous alley-oop dunks that seemed to suck the very life out of the building. With Edey on the floor, Memphis had an identity. Without him, they were adrift.

The comeback began in earnest after halftime. The Grizzlies burst out of the locker room like a team possessed, unleashing a 13-2 run that announced their intentions. Jaylen Wells, cool and collected, knocked down two crucial three-pointers. Jaren Jackson Jr., the team’s established star, added another. Suddenly, the once-insurmountable lead was fragile, and the game was on.

Jackson and Wells Seal the Deal in a Wild Finish

As the game hurtled toward its conclusion, the stars came out to play. Jaren Jackson Jr. was the steady hand for the Grizzlies, a leader who refused to let his team falter. He finished the night with a team-high 27 points, hitting clutch shots and making smart plays when it mattered most.

But it was the sophomore, Jaylen Wells, who delivered some of the most back-breaking moments. With nerves of steel that defied his experience, Wells poured in 25 points on an absurdly efficient 9-of-11 shooting, including five three-pointers. He was the perfect complement to Jackson and Edey, a deadly sharpshooter who made the Pelicans pay for every defensive lapse.

The final minutes of regulation were a chaotic masterpiece. A Zion Williamson layup gave the Pelicans a one-point lead with under a minute to play. Jackson answered with a driving layup of his own. After an Edey free throw put Memphis up by two, it was Williamson again, hitting an impossible, contorting scoop shot with less than a second on the clock to tie the game at 122 and send the arena into a frenzy. Overtime.

But the extra period belonged to Memphis. After Alvarado tied the game one last time at 128 with his sixth three-pointer, the Grizzlies went to their stars. Jackson drew the defense and found a cutting Wells, who soared for a decisive dunk that gave Memphis the lead for good. The Pelicans’ magic had run out. A final turnover and a pair of Jackson free throws sealed their fate, ending their NBA Cup run with a heartbreaking 0-4 record. For the Grizzlies, it was a character-defining win, a brutal, beautiful victory snatched from the jaws of defeat.

This article first appeared on Total Apex Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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