Shorthanded Nets escape with tight win over Grizzlies

It wasn’t easy. And it wasn’t safe until Santi Aldama’s miss at the buzzer.

But the Nets escaped with a 106-104 win over the Grizzlies in front of a sellout crowd of 18,088 at Barclays Center.

Dennis Schroder smothered Ja Morant on the final play, forcing him to give the ball up to Aldama. And the Nets forced a last-second miss to improve to 4-4.

The Nets have won four of five against the Grizzlies (4-4), including 119-106 in Memphis on Oct. 30. And this latest came after six lead changes and four ties in a dramatic final period alone.

This one was a balanced effort for the Nets, who put six scorers in double-figures, including the entire starting lineup.

Schroder had 20 points, six assists and tough defense on Morant. And Cam Johnson added 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting, including several strong drives to the rim.

The shorthanded Nets — playing without Ben Simmons, Noah Clowney or Day’Ron Sharpe — were vulnerable in the paint and had precious little rim protection.

Massive Memphis center Zach Edey dominated inside with 25 points and 12 rebounds. Morant had 25 points, nine assists and an acrobatic, highlight-reel reverse dunk that brought cheers from the crowd.

But not as loud as those reserved for the Nets’ end-of-game heroics.

With the scored knotted at 101-all, Dorian Finney-Smith untied it on a 3-pointer from a Cam Thomas assist with 1:13 to play. Then after Schroder rebounded a Morant miss, he raced up court for a layup with 32.1 seconds left.

Jaren Jackson Jr. hit a 3-pointer three seconds later. And after the Nets ended up with a shot clock violation on the other end with just 4.2 seconds left in regulation, they needed a last-ditch defensive stand to keep it from overtime.

It was a seesaw affair with 17 lead changes and 11 ties.

After allowing 68.4 percent shooting in the first quarter, the Nets tightened up to hold Memphis to just 30.8 percent in the second and 1 of 10 from deep. The Nets outscored the Grizzlies, 27-19, to take a one-point lead into the half.

There were eight lead changes in the third quarter alone. The Nets trailed, 75-72, after a Jackson 3-pointer. But they used an 11-4 run to take a four-point edge into the fourth.

The Nets trailed 86-85 on Aldama’s putback off a Scotty Pippen Jr. miss. But after another Pippen miss, they got a go-ahead 3-pointer from Finney-Smith, who then added a layup for a 90-86 edge.

Jackson erased it with another 3, leaving the Nets down, 97-96. But Schroder answered with a 3-pointer of his own for a 99-97 lead.

It was tied at 99-all and 101-all before the dramatic finish.