Grizzlies close in on series win by withstanding Blazers’ push
Marc Gasol had 25 points and the visiting Memphis Grizzlies took a 3-0 series lead over the Trail Blazers by withstanding a late Portland rally for a 115-109 victory Saturday in a Western Conference firstround matchup.
The series winner will advance to face the Warriors in the West semifinals.
Courtney Lee had 20 points and Mike Conley added 14 before leaving the game late in the third quarter with a facial injury. Memphis was already thin at point guard with reserve Beno Udrih sidelined with a sprained right ankle.
Game 4 is Monday in Portland.
The Grizzlies led by as many as 14 points, but Portland trimmed its deficit to 90-82 with 7:28 left after three free throws from Nicolas Batum. Gasol answered with two jumpers to stem the threat until Arron Afflalo’s three-pointer pulled Portland to 94-87.
Batum’s three-pointer got Portland as close as 94-91 with 2:23 left. But Tony Allen’s basket ended Portland’s 9-0 run and Zach Randolph added two free throws.
Allen’s fastbreak dunk with 1:14 left all but sealed it for the Grizzlies. Batum had another three-pointer to make it 100-94 but Portland couldn’t catch up.
Batum finished with 27 points for the Blazers, who have dropped seven straight games, including four to wrap up the regular season. CJ McCollum added 26.
Randolph had 16 points as the Grizzlies won their seventh straight against Portland, including a sweep of the fourgame regular-season series.
Afflalo returned to the Blazers after missing the first two games of the series with a right shoulder strain. After coming to the Blazers via a trade with Denver at the deadline, Afflalo was a key contributor when starter Wesley Matthews ruptured his Achilles in March and was lost for the season.
Nets 91, Hawks 83:
Brook Lopez had 22 points and 13 rebounds, Thaddeus Young added 18 points and 11 rebounds and Brooklyn beat visiting Atlanta to cut the Hawks’ lead to 2-1 in the Eastern Conference series. ... The Nets seized control with an 18-0 run spanning the third and fourth quarters after the Hawks grabbed their first lead since the opening basket, then went on to beat the East’s No. 1 seed for the first time in seven meetings this season. ... Bojan Bogdanovic added 19 points for the eighth-seeded Nets, who can tie the series with a victory in Atlanta on Monday. ... “We know they’re going to make adjustments, but we really feel we can compete with these guys and we have a lot of confidence right now,” Lopez said. ... DeMarre Carroll scored a playoff career-high 22 points for the Hawks, who were denied what would have been their second 3-0 lead since moving to Atlanta in 1968. Paul Millsap added 18 points and 17 rebounds. ... “I think they’re a confident group, just like we are. It’s the playoffs,” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. “I think they’ve played well really for stretches from the beginning and it’s going to be a series.”
Bucks 92, Bulls 90:
Jerryd Bayless made a layup at the buzzer off an inbounds pass, lifting host Milwaukee to a victory over Chicago, which still leads the East series 3-1. ... With 1.3 seconds left, Jared Dudley threw a high-arcing pass toward the basket from side court. Bayless caught the ball and quickly threw up the layup with his right hand for the winning basket. ... Chicago had a chance to win with the game tied at 90-90. But Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton tipped a dribble away from Derrick Rose to force a steal. Bucks coach Jason Kidd called a timeout to set up the final play. ... Game 5 is Monday in Chicago. ... Jimmy Butler had a playoff careerhigh 33 points for the Bulls. Rose finished with 14 points, and Pau Gasol had 16 points and 10 rebounds.