Playing the second night of a back-to-back, the OKC Thunder hosted the surging second-seeded Memphis Grizzlies Saturday night in an epic inter-conference showdown.
Through 48 minutes of action, the game played out as advertised. Each club's star talents showed out and recorded a slew of highlight reel plays (Jalen Williams' emphatic driving jam over Jaren Jackson Jr. in the second quarter anyone?!) while fans witnessed high-end energy and efforts displayed on both ends of the floor by each team.
Of course, like the majority of games played this season, Oklahoma City proved to be too much for Memphis to handle, as they ultimately pulled away with a hard-fought 125-112 win in front of a packed crowd out at FedEx Forum.
However, even though the outcome may have been rather standard for 2024-25, the way in which they won certainly was not.
While the Thunder did see some solid efforts on the less glamourous side of the ball, with headline examples being Isaiah Hartenstein's two-block performance and Kenrich Williams swiping away multiple steals, they didn't necessarily lean in on their ability to play stand-out team defense and hold the opposition to sub-average scoring nights like they usually do.
The Grizzlies gave Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and company quite a bit of trouble with their attack-heavy style of play, as they forced their way toward 39 trips to the charity stripe and had many Thunder players on the brink of fouling out.
Instead, OKC came away from the night victorious by beating Memphis in an area of play that, generally speaking, they reign supreme in the offensive rebounding department.
The statistical discrepancy clearly flummoxed Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins.
Grizzlies coach tabs Thunder rebounding efforts as main reason for win
While speaking to reporters post-game, Jenkins acknowledged that even though he feels his team's mentality may have been off, in the end, he believes that what shot them in the foot was their loss in the offensive rebounding and, thus, possessions battle.
"You shoot the same percentages and give them 24 more shots. Do the math right there. It was a big problem," Jenkins said.
By game's end, the Thunder and Grizzlies were virtually neck-and-neck in shot conversion rate, particularly from downtown where both cashed in on 42.9 percent of their attempts.
However, Oklahoma City managed to obliterate Memphis on the glass, as they out-rebounded them 55 to 40 and grabbed 21 offensive rebounds compared to just 10. More impressive, these second-chance opportunities led to 29 points.
What's most shocking about this turn of events is the fact that, on the year, the Thunder rank a middling 14 in rebounds and 15 in offensive boards while the Grizzlies come in second in both.
While this deviation from the mean was heavily influenced by coach Jenkins' decision to pull the 7-foot-4 Zach Edey for good early in the third, as he wished to go with a smaller lineup with the hope of picking up the pace, it's evident that their dominance on the boards played a massive role in the game's ultimate outcome.
To Memphis' headman, it may have been the biggest problem for them on the night.