Memphis Hustle defeat Rio Grande Valley to end six-game road trip

Edinburg, Texas – The Memphis Hustle, the NBA G League affiliate of the Memphis Grizzlies, defeated the Rio Grande Valley Vipers 127-116 on Saturday night.

The game was tied at 101-101 with 5:05 left to play when Damien Jefferson connected on a reverse layup and an old-fashioned 3-point play to take a 104-101 lead. Memphis quickly extended its lead to 11 points, 120-109, capping off a 19-8 run to put the Vipers away.

Kenneth Lofton Jr. posted a double-double with a career-high 31 points and 14 rebounds. Jacob Gilyard and Jefferson scored 19 points apiece. Dakota Mathias finished with 16 points and six assists and Romeo Weems scored 15 points off the bench.

The Hustle shot over 50% for the second consecutive game, finishing 46-of-87 (52.9%) from the field while outscoring the Vipers 51-30 from 3-point range. Memphis held Rio Grande Valley to 10-of-35 (28.6%) from 3-point range.

Louis King paced the Vipers with 29 points on 10-of-23 shooting from the field. Darius Days followed with 22 points and eight rebounds. TyTy Washington Jr. had 16 points and seven assists. Trevor Hudgins tallied 13 points and six assists.

The Vipers led 61-59 at the halftime break behind 14 points from King. Lofton Jr. led all scorers with 19 points in the first half. Justin Bean sparked a strong second half start for the Hustle, scoring eight points in nine minutes, to help Memphis to a 90-86 lead heading to the fourth quarter.

Memphis returns home to face the Birmingham Squadron on Monday, Nov. 21, at 7 p.m. CT. Fans can watch the game on NBAGLeague.com.  

Single-game tickets for all regular season Hustle games are on sale now. Tickets start as low as $14 and are available for purchase at Ticketmaster.com/Memphis-Hustle-Tickets or by calling (901) 888-HOOP. Additionally, all-inclusive floor seats and tables are still available for purchase, and the Hustle are accepting $50 deposits for groups of 10-or-more. 

For more information on the Memphis Hustle, visit memphishustle.com, follow the team on Twitter and Instagram (@MemphisHustle) or like Memphis Hustle on Facebook.