Oklahoma City Thunder defeat Memphis Grizzlies 111-102 to level series 1-1 – NBA Play-offs Update
On Tuesday night James Harden led the Oklahoma City Thunder off the bench in a 111-102 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 2 of the Western Conference semi-finals.
The Thunder bounced back in a tremendous fashion, as they got big bench effort. Besides the Oklahoma’s bench, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook also made big plays. Durant scored 26 points, clutched five rebounds and wracked one assist. Westbrook chipped in with 24 points along with two boards and six assists.
Memphis opened the first quarter with Tony Allen’s two points from the paint. The Thunder were rusty to begin and put their first points in the third minute of the first, but then quickly drew near the Grizzlies and grabbed the lead with Durant’s two successive three-pointers. Oklahoma outscored the Grizzlies with a 15-9 run and secured the quarter in their favour.
The Thunder led the Grizzlies by 11 points going into the second quarter, but Memphis quickly gathered themselves and notched the lead down to five with a 14-8 run. However, the Thunder remained firm and tackled the Grizzlies’ surge with a brisk 18-11 run, which brought back the lead into the double-figure, as the Oklahoma led Memphis by 54-44 at half-time.
Durant shot a floater on Westbrook’s assist and gave a smashing start to the Thunder after the break. Durant was too hot to handle, he kept finding easy access in the fragile defence of the Grizzlies, as he thumped 12 points for the Thunder during the period. With the brilliance of Durant and a first half lead the Thunder were relentless and sealed another period in their favour.
The final quarter was the highest scoring period of the entire game, as both teams tallied more than 30 points. The Thunder led the Grizzlies with a double-digit lead until 2:09 minutes were left in the game. Memphis took possession and slashed the shortfall to just six.
However, Westbrook and company had other plans, as they threw the Grizzlies out of the contest with a 7-4 run and registered their victory. Oklahoma led the Grizzlies in the paint with 38 points and their biggest lead during the game was 21.
Point guard Mike Conley led the Grizzlies attack with 24 points, two rebounds and eight assists.
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