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PORTLAND – The Portland Trail Blazers' unbeaten start to the season came to an abrupt halt on Sunday night as they fell 124-103 to the Memphis Grizzlies at the Moda Center. After opening the campaign with three straight victories, Portland was unable to sustain its early momentum against a determined Memphis squad.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair, with both teams matching each other point for point. The opening quarter ended in a 25-25 tie, and the second quarter saw each team put up 33 points, sending the game into halftime knotted at 58-58.
Portland's shooting was serviceable from the field in the first half, as the Blazers connected on 22 of 48 attempts (45.8 percent). However, their three-point shooting was a different story, with the team hitting just 7 of 26 attempts from beyond the arc (26.9 percent).
Memphis, on the other hand, fared much better from long range. The Grizzlies shot 22-for-50 (44 percent) overall in the first half and 9-for-24 (37.5 percent) from three-point territory.
Deni Avdija paced Portland with 13 points at the break, while Ja Morant added 12 points and Donovan Clingan contributed 11. For Memphis, rookie Cameron Boozer – the No. 3 overall pick in the June NBA Draft – led the way with 13 points, followed by Quinten Post with 10 and Cedric Coward with nine.
The third quarter proved decisive, as the Grizzlies outscored the Blazers 33-25 to take control of the game. Memphis never looked back from there, cruising to the 21-point victory.
Boozer finished with 18 points to lead the Grizzlies, while Avdija's game-high 24 points were not enough for Portland.
This story is developing and will be updated with further information.
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Elias Esquivel is a graduate of the University of Oregon, where he earned a Bachelor's degree in Journalism with a minor in Sports Business. He has freelanced for numerous national and international publications, covering events ranging from state and college competitions to world championships. After graduation, he shifted his focus to local high school sports in the Willamette Valley. His work has appeared in World Athletics, The Oregonian, and The Portland Tribune. In his free time, he enjoys reading Orson Scott Card's Speaker for the Dead and playing God of War Ragnarök. He also has two cats. Follow him on Twitter @_esquivel01.