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Memphis won thanks to Jonas Valanciunas’ dominance
The Western Conference Play-in Tournament began tonight at FedEx Forum, with No.9 seed Memphis Grizzlies against No.10 seed San Antonio Spurs.
THE GRIZZLY BEAT THE SPURS 100-96, ELIMINATING THEM FROM PLAYOFF CONTENTION. Meanwhile, with the win, the Grizzlies keep their playoff chances alive.
They will now meet the Golden State Warriors in the last match of the play-in round for the Western Conference’s eighth seed.
The Grizzlies defeated the Spurs thanks to huge performances from Jonas Valanciunas and Dillon Brooks.
Valanciunas is also the first player in franchise history to have 20 or more points and 20 or more rebounds.
They gained an early lead over the Spurs and dominated them for the majority of the quarters, eventually defeating them in the fourth.
Memphis dominated in the opening quarter
Dejounte Murray swiped the ball from Ja Morant and dunked on the other end to get the Spurs started.
The Grizzlies tied the game with 10:54 left in the first quarter when Jonas Valanciunas hit a jumper.
Jaren Jackson Jr. stole the ball from Jakob Poelti and scored on the other side, giving Memphis a lead over the Spurs.
However, Keldon Johnson hit a jumper to tie the score at 4-4.
Dillon Brooks responded by knocking down a jumper and regaining the lead.
Jaren Jackson makes a three-pointer, extending the Grizzlies’ advantage to five points.
With 8:54 left in the quarter, the lead had grown to 7 points.
Memphis got another bucket after Valanciunas made another basket and Jaren Jackson Jr. made a three-pointer.
They maintained their lead over the Spurs.
Brooks drove directly into the rim and dunked, giving the team a 14-point advantage.
Keldon Johnson eventually scored for the Spurs.
However, Ja Morant nailed a three-pointer and Valaciunas scored off an assist from Morant.
Brooks sank another jumper as the Grizzlies maintained their dominance.
The Spurs finally broke through with Lonnie Walker’s layup and Rudy Gay’s three-pointer, but it wasn’t enough as Memphis continued to score.
De’Anthony Melton was stopped.
Devin Vassell’s jumper was blocked, as was Desmond Bane’s, but Murray eventually made the layup for the Spurs.
Rudy gets another three-pointer with a minute left in the first and another with 7.8 seconds left.
Despite a late-game surge by the Spurs, the Grizzlies lead by 19 points at the end of the first quarter.
The Spurs cut the lead in half
The Grizzlies lead the Spurs 19-38 entering the fourth quarter.
The Spurs’ opening basket trimmed the lead to 16 points.
They were 24-41 with 10 minutes left in the quarter.
Poeltl makes a basket to cut the deficit to 11 points. Patty Mills hits a long three-pointer.
The Spurs extended their 15-0 run with a bucket from Keldon, trimming the advantage to two points before Ja Morant dunked on the other end.
Halfway through the third quarter, the score was 44-45.
However, the Grizzlies immediately stretched their lead to 43-51 with less than three minutes remaining.
Rudy Gay then hit a jumper, cutting the advantage to four points with 2:14 left in the half.
Poeltl blocked Ja Morant, while Kyle Anderson blocked Keldon.
Memphis’ lead was extended thanks to a bucket by Desmond Bane.
With roughly a minute left in the half, Keldon tipped off Poeltl’s miss.
Morant hit a three-pointer with 41.7 seconds left in the fourth, bringing the score to 49-56.
The Grizzlies maintained their dominance
DeMar DeRozan begins the third quarter with a free-throw jumper.
With 10:21 remaining in the quarter, Walker shoots a left-handed layup to cut the margin to three points.
Anderson subsequently drew a foul and made a basket, extending the Grizzlies’ lead.
The Spurs trailed the Grizzlies by 5 points midway through the quarter, and Valanciunas then extended the Grizzlies’ lead.
Morant then drove directly to the basket, making it a 9-point game.
Rudy hit a jumper with 4:45 left in the quarter to make it 61-68.
Every time the Spurs reduced the lead, the Grizzlies proceeded to pull away.
They seized a five-point lead, which Valanciunas extended with a jumper.
DeRozan then converted a layup to narrow the lead to five points, and Morant responded with a jumper.
The Grizzlies led 65-72 at the end of the quarter.
In the end, the Grizzlies prevail
With 10:29 remaining in the quarter, Tyus Jones made a three-pointer to give the Grizzlies a 10-point advantage.
Gorgui Dieng took a foul after scoring, and he subsequently hit a three-pointer to trim the Spurs’ lead to six points.
Rudy’s three-pointer from inside the three-point line provided the Spurs with another basket.
Mills’ three-pointer pulled the Spurs within one point.
After trailing the Grizzlies throughout the game, DeRozan’s jumper gave the Spurs the lead.
With 7:13 left in the fourth, Brooks made a jumper to reclaim the lead.
The Spurs took the lead again after Johnson hit a three-pointer.
Both teams were deadlocked at halftime in the fourth quarter.
Following that, Brooks hit a jumper to tie the game at 83-83 halfway through the third quarter.
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He receives yet another bucket for the lead
DeRozan drove to the bucket, but Valanciunas stopped him, allowing him to keep the advantage.
With 3:53 left in the quarter, the score was 87-89.
Anderson makes a three-pointer, giving the team a five-point advantage.
Valanciunas scooped in a layup to make the score 87-94.
The Spurs subsequently got within four points with 2:45 left in the first on to Rudy Gay’s three-pointer.
Morant attempts but misses a three-pointer, but Desmond converts, extending the advantage to 90-98 with a minute and a half remaining.
DeRozan responds with a jumper, and Rudy Gay follows with a three-pointer on the next play.
They were 96-99 with 8.0 seconds left when Morant hit a free throw, ending the game 96-100.
Highlights: Jonas Valanciunas and Dillon Brooks led the Grizzlies to a victory over the Spurs, keeping their postseason chances alive.
Dillon Brooks led the bench with 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists.
While Jonas led the starting with a double-double of 23 points and 23 rebounds, as well as an assist.
He becomes the first player in Memphis Grizzlies history to have 20+ points and 20+ rebounds in three-quarters of a regular-season or playoff game.
“Those two players were huge for us tonight,” Grizzlies standout Ja Morant said.
“I want to thank everyone on our team. We all got it done, but…
[Valanciunas] closed down the paint for us today, and DB — tonight provided him another case for All-Defensive team.”
Similarly, Ja Morant finished with 20 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds.
“We plan to pack for a three-game road trip,” Morant remarked, indicating Memphis’ plans.
Jaren Jackson Jr. provided 10 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists.
“It was incredible. “There’s nothing like it,” Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. said after the game.
“You sense the enthusiasm from the crowd, you see the towels in the crowd, it kind of reminds you of the old Grindhouse days, especially early on.”
It was simply strange. It’s difficult to put into words.”
Memphis now meet the Golden State Warriors, who defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 103-100.
“We still have one more in front of us (that is) crucial.”
“The same as (Wednesday),” Valanciunas remarked. “It’s going to do or die, but that’s how we grow our confidence and experience.”
We’re a young team competing for something, and those games are crucial to us.”
The Spurs put up a good fight, but not enough to win.
The Spurs, on the other hand, fell behind by 19 points early in the game.
“We got our ass kicked in the first quarter,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said plainly.
Memphis scored eighteen of its 38 points in the paint.
However, they did an excellent job in the second half.
They even seized the lead halfway through the fourth quarter before succumbing to the Grizzlies.
DeMar DeRozan led the Spurs with 20 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists, while Keldon Johnson had a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Then came Dejounte Murray, who had the game’s only triple-double with 10 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists.
Jakob Poeltl had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, as well as 2 assists.
Similarly, Rudy Gay led the Spurs bench with 20 points and 7 rebounds.
“We got our ass kicked in the first quarter,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said plainly.
Memphis scored eighteen of its 38 points in the paint.
