Kevin Durant marshals Oklahoma City Thunder as they cruise past Memphis Grizzlies 99-72 – NBA news
Kevin Durant helped Oklahoma City Thunder annihilate Memphis Grizzlies 99-72 on Wednesday night at the Oklahoma City Arena.
Durant led OKC with 19 points and seven rebounds, while teammate Daequan Cook tallied 18 points off the bench.
After prevailing in their triple-overtime game, the Thunder sealed game 5 easily and went 3-2 in the second round. This is their first series lead in the Western Conference semi-finals.
The Grizzlies opened the quarter with a brisk 0-6 blitz and stretched it up to 6-12 advantage with 3:42 left in the first quarter. The Thunder then tied the frame at 17, using an 11-5 surge and rushed back in the game. James Harden thumped seven points during
the period for the Thunder, including a 25-footer.
The Thunder were sluggish in the early minutes of the second quarter, before they shred their tiring suits off and knotted the scores 28 all. The scores remain tied for more than one minute until midway, prior to OKC’s belligerent 15-5 charge that outplayed
the Grizzlies and the Thunder led them 46-35 at halftime.
Trailing by 16 points into the third quarter, the Grizzlies’ overall struggle continued. On the other hand, OKC carried on with the same momentum and extended their lead to 19 points when the quarter ended.
The one way traffic continued in the fourth frame as well, as the Grizzlies kept on fading with OKC’s every step towards the victory. Until 4:31 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Thunder raised the lead to 27 points that proved to be a mountain for Memphis
which was too high for them to climb. OKC finished the regulation time with a 99-72 advantage to seal the game in their favour.
The Thunder dominated the Grizzlies throughout the game and outscored them in fast break points from the three-point range. They clutched 15 offensive rebounds as compared to Memphis’ eight.
The Grizzlies recorded their season-worst 36 percent shooting in the game. Marc Gasol was the only player in their line-up who made it into the double figures. Gasol led the Grizzlies with 15 points, five rebounds, three steals, two blocks and one assist.
Game 1 and 3 hero Zach Randolph added just nine points in the game.
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