Ja Morant hits buzzer beater and dunks over 7ft Poeltl on way to 52-point game

Ja Morant threw down a massive dunk over seven-footer Jakob Poeltl and scored a career-high 52 points, lifting the Memphis Grizzlies over the San Antonio Spurs 118-105 on Monday night.

The arena was still buzzing from Morant’s fast-break slam late in the second quarter when Steven Adams delivered a length-of-the-court pass to Morant, who caught it mid-air and flipped in a buzzer-beater from the left baseline for a 68-58 halftime lead. Morant also hit a three-pointer from near the logo with the shot clock running down, creating a load of highlights from a memorable night.

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“It’s got to be the 50 [points],” Morant said when asked what was most memorable, adding: “I’m thankful for my teammates, my coaches. They believe in me and have all the confidence in the world that I’ll make the right plays.”

Morant added 13 consecutive points during the fourth quarter to break the game open, following up a career-best 46 points in a win Saturday at Chicago by connecting on 22 of 30 from the field. He hit all four three-point tries as Memphis won its second straight.

The Spurs’ loss left coach Gregg Popovich one game short of tying Don Nelson for the most regular-season wins by an NBA coach.

“He’s a beautiful player,” Popovich said of Morant. “What else can you say about him? It’s not just that he’s athletic. Everybody says, ‘He’s athletic.’ Somebody says, ‘He’s a freak of nature,’ because he’s so fast. ... But he makes decisions. He knows what is going on on the court. So, you combine that cerebral part of his game with his athleticism and you’ve got a special kid.”

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Morant said the pass from Adams that led to the 19-foot basket in the closing second of the