Ja Morant had 22 points and 10 assists in return, leading the Grizzlies to their season-opening victory over the Jazz

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Ja Morant had 22 points, 10 assists and five rebounds in his return, leading the Memphis Grizzlies to a 126-124 victory over the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night.

Morant played just nine games last season after serving a 25-game league suspension before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury. Santi Aldama scored 27 points and Desmond Bane added 24 more for the Grizzlies.

Lauri Markkanen scored 35 points and nine rebounds for Utah. Jordan Clarkson contributed 17 points and seven assists off the bench. Walker Kessler had 16 points and 14 rebounds.

The Jazz erased a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter and tied it at 116 on Kessler's tip-in with 2:48 left. Aldama scored back-to-back baskets to give the Grizzlies the lead for good.

Takeaways

Grizzlies: Memphis cooked the Jazz from distance for the majority of four quarters. Aldama, Bane and Jay Huff combined for 12 of the Grizzlies' 17 3-pointers.

Jazz: Laxity on offense undermined Utah's efforts to recover until the fourth quarter. The Jazz committed 16 turnovers in the first three quarters, giving Memphis 22 points.

Key moment

After trailing by as many as 17 points in the first half, Utah took the lead 105-104 after a 17-3 run with 6:45 minutes left. Taylor Hendricks and Markkanen combined for two baskets and four free throws during the run to keep the score close.

Key statistics

Huff scored 13 points on 4-of-6 shooting, marking just the fourth time in his NBA career – and first time in two seasons – that he scored in double figures.

Next

The Grizzlies visit Houston on Friday and the Jazz host Golden State the same night.

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