Morant's triple-double helps Grizzlies build big lead and coast to 122-99 victory over Bucks

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Ja Morant had 26 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds and helped the Memphis Grizzlies build a 31-point second-half cushion and beat the Milwaukee Bucks 122-99 on Thursday night.

Santi Aldama added 19 points and nine rebounds, while Scotty Pippen Jr. and Jaylen Wells finished with 16 points each as the Grizzlies snapped a two-game skid. Memphis ended the night shooting 52%, including Morant going 9 for 16. Seven Grizzlies players finished in double figures.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 37 points and 11 rebounds, connecting on 17 of 22 shots. Brook Lopez scored 12 and Bobby Portis Jr. finished with 11 points.

Milwaukee has lost four straight.

Bucks: Damian Lillard continues to struggle with his shooting. Lillard was 1 for 12 in the game , including missing all six of his 3-pointers. Lillard is just 6 for 27 on 3s in his last three games.

Grizzlies: After looking lethargic on both ends of the floor in a Wednesday loss to Brooklyn, Memphis came out with much more energy, shooting 51% in the first half and holding the Bucks to 42%. The lead reached 31 early in the fourth as Memphis continued to shoot better than 50%.

Morant, who expressed some frustration after Wednesday’s loss to the Nets, took over the game in the first half. At the midway point, he was already on the verge of his 12th career triple-double with 21 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. One of those assists came on a scramble for the ball in the front court before Morant grabbed the ball, and from the seat of his pants, spotted Aldama for a reverse dunk.

The Bucks were 9 for 42 from 3-point range, while Memphis finished the night at 52%

Bucks host Cleveland on Saturday, while the Grizzlies visit Philadelphia.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard, right, handles the ball against Memphis Grizzlies guard Scotty Pippen Jr. in the second half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) handles the ball against Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez (11) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) handles the ball in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Memphis Grizzlies Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez (11) handles the ball against Memphis Grizzlies center Zach Edey (14) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) tries to stay inbounds in the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Milwaukee Bucks Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) handles the ball against Milwaukee Bucks guard Gary Trent Jr. (5) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard (0) handles the ball against Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaylen Wells in the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers calls to players in the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Memphis Grizzlies Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant handles the ball against Milwaukee Bucks guard Gary Trent Jr. (5) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

OREGON CITY, Ore. (AP) — Problems with a ballot-sorting machine are slowing the vote tally in a suburban Portland county that was also plagued by counting issues in 2022 and is home to a key congressional race this year.

The sorter in Oregon's third-largest county, Clackamas, began experiencing mechanical issues about a week after ballots were mailed to voters in mid-October, elections officials said Thursday.

At times it abruptly stops moving ballots, making it difficult to process a large volume without interruption. The issue also has delayed voters’ ability to track whether their ballots have been counted, officials said.

Representatives from the company that manufactured the sorter have been on site trying to fix it.

County Clerk Catherine McMullen, who was elected in 2022, told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Wednesday that ballot processing was “about a day behind where we want to be.”

Clackamas County makes up a large part of U.S. House District 5, considered to be one of the nation's closest races as a Republican incumbent seeks to hold a seat she narrowly flipped from Democrats in 2022.

That same year a printing error on primary ballots delayed results for nearly two weeks as tens of thousands of ballots with blurry barcodes were rejected by a counting machine, forcing the county to shift nearly 200 employees to vote tabulation duties.

This year U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer faces a tough reelection bid in the district, where voters preferred President Joe Biden over Trump by almost 10 percentage points in 2020. The Democratic nominee is state Rep. Janelle Bynum.

Elections workers are now processing incoming ballots using hand scanners, a practice currently used in smaller Oregon counties and last used in Clackamas County in 2015, officials said. Workers continue taking in mailed ballots as well as those placed in drop boxes at the same rate and are processing ballots in the order they are received.

As of Wednesday night, officials said nearly 83,000 ballots had been processed.

FILE - An election work in Clackamas County, Ore., uses a purple maker to transfer votes from a spoiled ballot to a fresh one so the ball can be scanned in Oregon City, Ore., May 25, 2022. Problems with a ballot-sorting machine are delaying the vote count in a suburban Portland, Oregon county where issues with blurry bar codes on mail-in ballots delayed elections results in a key Congressional primary race for two weeks in 2022. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus, File)

FILE - An election worker examines a ballot at the Clackamas County Elections office, May 19, 2022, in Oregon City, Ore. Problems with a ballot-sorting machine are delaying the vote count in a suburban Portland, Oregon county where issues with blurry bar codes on mail-in ballots delayed elections results in a key Congressional primary race for two weeks in 2022. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus, File)