NBA: Grizzlies roar into West Finals as Thunder fall late

Two years after the Oklahoma City Thunder eliminated the Memphis Grizzlies in game seven of their Western Conference semifinals, Zach Randolph and company got their revenge.

The Grizzlies stayed strong late when the Thunder made an implausible rally to trail by just two late, holding on for an 88-84 triumph, Wednesday (Thursday, PHL time) at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, advancing to the West Finals on the back of a 4-1 series win.  

Two years ago today, Thunder beat Grizzlies 105-90 in Game 7 of West semis. Can OKC win tonight to keep its season alive?

— The NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) May 15, 2013

OKC had won game one on their home court, 93-91, but it was a Memphis sweep after that, 99-93, 87-81, 103-97, prior to this deciding game.

The Thunder began with seven unanswered points, but Memphis battled back to force six lead changes and four deadlocks, before dunks by Serge Ibaka and Kevin Martin put the Thunder on top by five, 23-18, after one quarter.

Twin triples from Quincy Pondexter and Jerryd Bayles began the second, putting the Grizzlies on top, 24-23, only for Kevin Durant to equalize things with a split at the line.

Unfortunately for the Thunder, it was all Grizzlies after that. A 12-2 blitz with scores from Tayshaun Prince and Zach Randolph armed the visiting side with a 48-37 advantage, and two free throws from Mike Conley right before the end of the first half made it 12, 50-38.

Memphis' lead reached a high of 46, 60-14, on a vicious dunk in transition by the veteran Prince, 7:10 left in the third. However, the Thunder still had a rally within them, helped out by a bizarre sequence in which Tony Allen was slapped with a technical foul for accidentally throwing a shirt onto the court while on the bench.

Two triples from Derek Fisher and a lay-up from Thabo Sefolosha boosted a 16-4 Thunder blitz, getting them within two points with a full quarter left to play.  

The Thunder however were unable to capitalize on their run, as they went without a score in the first three and a half minutes, letting the Grizzlies boost their lead to seven, before Durant canned a jumper for a 69-64 difference, 8:32 left.

Another two-minute dry spell from the home team made it a 12-point affair, 76-64, as Pondexter gave the Grizzlies an outside complement to Zach Randolph down low.

Twin makes by Marc Gasol had it at 80-68, 4:13 left, but the Thunder got clutch slams from Serge Ibaka sandwiching a Fisher trey, to get their deficit down to five, 80-75, still 1:31 to play.  Tony Allen however managed an and-one play in transition, getting Ibaka's sixth foul in the process, for an 83-75 tally.

Off a timeout, the Thunder fed Ibaka's replacement, Nick Collison twice, to get within four, 49.3 seconds left, 83-79. Off a timeout, Marc Gasol stopped the Grizzlies' bleeding with a jumper, but Kevin Martin hit two on the other end to keep the difference at four, 85-81.

With just 21.2 seconds left to go, OKC was forced to foul, and Zach Randolph managed just a split. Going down the court, Reggie Jackson canned a huge triple to make it a two-point affair, 86-84, keeping the Thunder's hopes alive.

Oklahoma City fouled Randolph again, and this time the big man missed both. Following a timeout, the Thunder were able to inbound the ball to Durant. Despite his man draped all over him, KD was able to shake him off for an open jumper, but the attempt went wide to the left. Allen then iced the game with a pair of charities, to the disappointment of the Thunder crowd.

Randolph led all scorers with 28 points, forming a double-double with his 14 rebounds. Mike Conley also had a double-double with 13 points and 11 assists, plus seven boards and two steals. Defensive Player of the Year Marc Gasol produced 10 points and seven rebounds, plus three steals and three blocks.

Kevin Durant was held to 21 points on 5-of-21 shooting, missing all four of his long-range attempts. He added eight rebounds and six assists, but turned the ball over seven times.

Serge Ibaka had 17 points, eight boards and three swats before fouling out. Reggie Jackson chimed in with 16 markers, nine boards and five dimes, versus no turnovers, while Derek Fisher and Kevin Martin combined for 19 points.

The Thunder turned the ball over 14 times, giving up 22 points in the process, compared to 10 miscues and nine turnover points by the Griz.  - AMD, GMA News