Adams shines in defeat

Steven Adams made a long-overdue return to the Memphis Grizzlies’ starting lineup for yesterday’s game 4Western Conference semifinal against the Golden StateWarriors – and did his bit to give his side a sniff of the upset. In the end it wasn’t to be, with Steph Curry’s 32 points propelling theWarriors to a hard-fought 101-98 victory to give them the 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven NBA series. The 28-year-old New Zealander finished with a double-double of 10 points, 15 rebounds and 3 assists in 27 minutes. Hemade 5 of 9 shots, grabbed 7 boards off the offensive glass and was a team-best +13 in plus/minus. The 10 firsthalf rebounds the 2.11m Kiwi hauled in equalled the franchise record for boards through two quarters.