(Reuters) – The Memphis Grizzlies recorded the biggest margin of victory in NBA history on Thursday, beating the Oklahoma City Thunder by 73 points in a 152-79 mauling.
The margin topped the previous record of 68, set by the Cleveland Cavaliers in a 148-80 win over Miami Heat in 1991.
Thunder had a number of players unavailable, including leading scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and fell to their eighth straight defeat.
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said the score was not a fair reflection on the team’s ability.
“Tonight is not necessarily who we are,” he said. “I think we’ve definitely shown that from a competitive standpoint. This isn’t indicative of who our team is.
“Competition comes with great joy, and it also comes with grief and frustration and anger … It’s why the joy feels so good, because when you get punched and you taste your own blood, it doesn’t feel right.”
Jaren Jackson Jr led Memphis with 27 points in 20 minutes while the Grizzlies’ bench scored 93 points, more than the entire Thunder team.
Oklahoma City also have the unwanted record of the biggest home defeat in NBA history, losing by 57 points to the Indiana Pacers in May.
(Reporting by Hritika Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
