Thunder at Grizzlies
THE STORY: The Oklahoma City Thunder and Memphis Grizzlies end a brief hiatus when the Western Conference semifinal series resumes Saturday with Game 3 in Tennessee. The two teams are back on the court for the first time since Tuesday, when Oklahoma City evened the series with a 111-102 victory in Game 2. The fourth-seeded Thunder were more than a two-man act as Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook received plenty of help from the bench. James Harden scored 21 points, Eric Maynor added 15 and Nick Collison frustrated Grizzlies star Zach Randolph with stellar defense. The split that eighth-seeded Memphis earned in Oklahoma City places it in good position to notch its second consecutive series upset. The Grizzlies ousted the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs in the first round.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, ESPN
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES: Randolph had just 15 points on 2-of-13 shooting and Memphis committed 16 turnovers during Game 2. The effort was a sharp contrast from the Grizzlies’ Game 1 triumph that included 34 points from Randolph and just eight turnovers. Mike Conley was Memphis’ top performer in Game 2 with a playoff career-best 24 points on 10-of-15 shooting. Guard O.J. Mayo had 16 points off the bench for his highest-scoring output of the playoffs. Center Marc Gasol made just 3-of-9 shots in Game 2 after going 9-for-11 in the opener. Gasol is averaging 16.5 points and 11.5 rebounds in the series. Memphis has won 11 straight home games – including three playoff wins – since last losing at home on March 9 to the New York Knicks.
ABOUT THE THUNDER: Durant (29.5 average) and Westbrook (26.5) have averaged 56 points during the first two games of the series. Maynor was a stunning 6-for-7 from the field in his top playoff effort. Collison had seven points and seven rebounds but his biggest contribution was his stellar defensive work against Randolph, who dominated the Thunder in Game 1. Oklahoma City was 8-for-14 from 3-point range with Maynor hitting all three of his attempts and Durant making both his attempts. Forward Serge Ibaka sprained his left ankle during Game 2 and is listed as probable for Saturday’s game. Ibaka is averaging 10.7 points, 10.3 rebounds and 4.4 blocks during the postseason.
WHO'S HOT/WHO’S NOT: Conley is averaging 19.5 points and 7.5 assists in the series. Durant is averaging 31.6 points in seven playoff games.
KEY STATISTIC: Randolph and Gasol combined to shoot 5-for-22 in Game 2 after hitting 21-of-33 shots in the opener.
LAST WORD: “I just wanted to keep his catches further out on the block and try to be physical with him. He’s gonna score, he’s gonna make shots. He’s gonna be tough in all the rest of the games because I’m sure he feels like he can play better so I just have to continue to try to compete.” – Collison on his Game 2 efforts against Randolph.