Lyou Grizzlies Memphis had a special preseason opening night after winning by 87-77 to the Milwaukee Bucks, current NBA champions, after suspending after three quarters the match they played for an exhibition at the FedExForum, where it is activated a fire alarm, which forced his evacuation.
At the time of delay, the Grizzlies led 87-77 in the first preseason game for both teams and that scoreboard was the one that was officially counted as the competition could not be resumed. A suspension that left without debuting Spanish Santi Aldama, who until the moment the alarm went off had not jumped onto the court by decision of the Grizzlies coach
Authorities said the problem was a false alarm caused by a sprinkler in a non-public area. The delay was a little over an hour after the alarm went off and the game was canceled.
Results of the night
- Knicks 125-104 Pacers
- Rockets 125-119 Wizards
- Grizzlies 87-77 Bucks
“With the extended delay, the league, in consultation with the Bucks and Grizzlies, has decided not to complete the game in the interest of player safety,” the NBA announced.
All fans were removed from the building when they are the alarm while the workers of the field tried to determine the origin of what happened.
At one point, shortly after the teams left the court, Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer crossed the court with his suitcase in tow. Slowly, other Bucks players and staff, some with trays of food that are delivered after games are over, left the building.
Although the team waited until the official word before leaving, it was questionable after the significant delay whether the teams would return given how long it would take the players to prepare for another 12 minutes of basketball.
“Tonight was a unique experience,” Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said. “No one could have foreseen that that had happened. Great collaboration between both teams and the league. Much dialogue. And it was definitely unique. “
