Oklahoma City Thunder defeat Memphis Grizzlies in close encounter – NBA Recap
The Oklahoma City Thunder came out on top after an enthralling encounter with the Memphis Grizzlies. The FedEx Forum game was too close to call throughout but the Thunder side showed their pedigree by keeping their nerve and ensuring a 100 – 95 win.
Russell Westbrook top scored in the game with 30 points, also dishing out 4 assists and grabbing 6 rebounds for Oklahoma City. Kevin Durant was prolific as ever; he scored 22 points, collected 11 boards and handed out 5 assists in the game. Thabo Sefolosha and Nazr Mohammed also got into double figures for OKC.
The Grizzlies charge was led by big man Marc Gasol. The centre recorded a double-double with team high 20 points and game high 14 rebounds. Star forward Rudy g*y had 16 points in the game while Mike Conley impressed with 15 points and 10 assists. In a team effort by Memphis, 3 other Grizzlies players got into double figures for scoring.
The home side started off the better, going 6 – 1 up inside the opening minutes. Oklahoma City however soon overtook them and the lead changed hands a few more times in the first quarter, before it came to an end at 26 – 25 to the Thunder.
The second quarter was also a neck and neck affair. Oklahoma City might have planned to build on their slight advantage heading into the period but the Grizzlies had other ideas. They used a 9 – 0 burst to swing the momentum in their favour; going up 38 – 33. The Thunder however would claw down the deficit and ended the half on a 6 – 0 run, going into the break leading again at 54 – 52.
What had been a high scoring affair slowed down considerably when the two sides came out of the interval, both stepping up on the defensive end. An intense quarter saw controlled skirmishes between the two sides, with neither making many inroads but Oklahoma City still leading at the end 75 – 71.
Memphis toiled to cut their opponents down to size but the Thunder always managed to keep a distance between them. The final quarter saw the gap close down to 1 point right at the start, but that was as good as it got for the Grizzlies who trailed Oklahoma City throughout. Unable to make the big plays at the end, they resigned to the 100 – 95 defeat.
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