Will Hardy Reveals Key Advantage That Fueled Jazz’s Win Over Grizzlies

The Utah Jazz were able to conquer their troubles on the road in their latest 130-126 win vs. the Memphis Grizzlies, where there were a ton of positives to highlight en route to their ninth win of the regular season.

But among those bright spots in the Jazz's winning efforts, there was one in the eyes of head coach Will Hardy that was a big advantage in helping Utah get the leg up, especially in a place like Memphis––and that centered around some solid physicality to match that of the Grizzlies'.

"Yeah, this has always been a hard place to play. Memphis has historically played a very physical style," Hardy said following the Jazz's win. "I thought we didn't give in to that physicality. I thought we did a good job on the glass, in particular, of multiple people making multiple efforts. And then, offensively, playing in straight lines is what we're always going to try to emphasize."

"So, you know, our team is growing, and we've had some games where we haven't quite met the physicality of the game, but I think tonight was a good example of their capability to do that, especially on the road."

Jazz Were Physical, Dominated the Glass vs. Grizzlies

Dec 12, 2025; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Utah Jazz center Jusuf Nurkic (30) questions the foul call in the first quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Smith-Imagn Images | Matthew Smith-Imagn Images

One way in which that physically certainly helped the Jazz was their ability to control the glass. Utah outrebounded a Zach Edey-less Grizzlies group 58-49 throughout the night, grabbing five more offensive boards––led by the efforts of Jusuf Nurkic's outstanding 17 rebounds throughout the night, and even eight from Kevin Love off the bench.

Combine that with the offensive end being held together by Keyonte George and his career-high 39 points on the night, and both sides of the ball were able to come together to forge a statement road victory for the Jazz.

It's that physicality and energy that this young Jazz roster can continue to play with that may ultimately help lead the way to many more wins in the future, and better results on both ends of the floor.

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