History Made, Game Lost
The Memphis Grizzlies made history Monday night in Cleveland. They also lost by 16. Both things are true, and the collision of those two facts makes Monday’s game one of the stranger entries in the NBA record books.
Memphis went 29-for-59 from beyond the arc, a 49.2% clip that tied the all-time NBA single-game record for three-pointers made. The record had previously been set by the Milwaukee Bucks on December 29, 2020 — a 144-97 blowout of Miami — and then matched by the Boston Celtics on October 22, 2024, in a 132-109 win over the New York Knicks. The Grizzlies join that company now, even without a win to accompany their spot in the record book. Cleveland won 142-126.
Nine Shooters, One Historic Night
What made Memphis’s performance unusual was the distribution. This was not a one-man show. Nine different Grizzlies made at least one three-pointer. Adama Bal made six. Dariq Whitehead made six. Lucas Williamson connected on five of 12 attempts. Olivier-Maxence Prosper was a remarkable four-for-five from deep. The entire roster was contributing to the historic total, which gave it a different texture than the record-setting nights from Milwaukee and Boston.
For Bal and Whitehead specifically, the night was a statement. Both are young players who have shown flashes of shooting ability, but six made threes each in a single game is a career-defining performance for almost anyone. They did it on a Monday night in late April, chasing a record that most fans didn’t know existed before they tied it.
The Cavaliers Were Simply Better
Cleveland’s 142-126 win was not a defensive masterpiece — you don’t hold a team to 49% from three while winning by limiting them. The Cavaliers simply outscored Memphis on the other end. Evan Mobley led Cleveland with 24 points. Dennis Schroder added 22 points and 11 assists. The Cavaliers ran their own efficient offensive game and let Memphis’s shooting rain fall, knowing they had the margin to withstand it.
That’s the mathematical irony at the core of Monday’s game. Memphis shot 49.2% from three and 45.7% from inside the arc. Their overall offensive efficiency was remarkable. And Cleveland still won comfortably. Sometimes the numbers don’t tell the whole story, and sometimes the story is that the other team was just better across 48 minutes.
What’s Next
The Memphis Grizzlies take their place alongside Milwaukee and Boston in the NBA’s three-point record books, which is a footnote they’ll carry forever. The more immediately relevant question for Memphis is how they finish the final days of a season that has been defined by development. For the Cavaliers, the win keeps Cleveland comfortably positioned in the Eastern Conference heading into playoff time. Both teams will remember Monday night — for very different reasons.
