Morant’s 47 points lift Grizzlies over Warriors to even series

Ja Morant scored 47 points to match his postseason high and carry the Memphis Grizzlies into a tie in the Western Conference semifinals with a 106-101 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night.

Morant scored the last 15 points for Memphis, starting with 4:16 left. He drove and turned around a defender before hitting a 7-foot jumper with 1:42 left to put Memphis ahead to stay at 100-99. He added four free throws and a 9-footer finishing with 18 in the fourth quarter.

The NBA’S Most Improved Player, who also had 47 in Game 2 against Utah last year, became only the third player in league history to have multiple 45-point games in the postseason before turning 23. The other two? Lebron James and Kobe Bryant.

Ziaire William hit four 3s and finished with 14 points off the bench. Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 12 points before fouling out for the third time in eight games this postseason. Brandon Clarke added 10 points.

Now the youngest team to reach the semifinal round in the past 25 years heads to San Francisco for Game 3 on Saturday night knowing the series will return to Memphis for Game 5.

Stephen Curry finished with 27 points on 3-of-11 shooting outside the arc. Jordan Poole added 20 off the bench but was 1 of 6 from 3. Andrew Wiggins had 16, going 1 of 7 from 3. Klay Thompson finished with 12 points and was 2 of 12 from 3. The Warriors shot just 7 of 38 from 3-point range.

The Warriors, in the semifinals for the seventh time in 10 years, had their chances. Trailing 104-101, Curry passed to Green, who tossed it to Thompson, who traveled with 17 seconds left. Morant hit two free throws for the final margin.

Celtics 109, Bucks 86: Jaylen Brown scored 25 of his 30 points in the first half, and host Boston beat Milwaukee to even their second-round series at one game apiece.

Brown shook off a dismal shooting night in Game 1, going 9 for 10 in the first half, including 5 for 5 on 3-pointers. Jayson Tatum added 19 points and eight assists. Al Horford had 14 points and 11 rebounds.

The series doesn’t resume until Game 3 on Saturday in Milwaukee.

Boston finished 20 of 43 from beyond the arc. The Celtics played without point guard Marcus Smart after he was ruled out before the game with a bruised right thigh he sustained in Game 1. Derrick White took his place in the starting lineup, making his first start in a playoff game since 2019 when he was with San Antonio.

The Celtics clamped down on Giannis Antetokounmpo after his triple-double in the series opener, limiting him to 28 points — mostly in the third quarter — nine rebounds and seven assists. Jrue Holiday added 19 points and seven assists. Bobby Portis chipped in 13 points and eight rebounds.

The Bucks cut into what had been a 26-point Celtics lead in the third quarter. Antetokounmpo keyed the charge with 18 points in the period.

BRANDON DILL/ASSOCIATED PRESS Grizzlies guard Ja Morant reacts after scoring during the second half of a Game 2 win over the Warriors to even their Western Conference semifinals series at 1-1. Morant had a game-high 47 points, including 18 in the fourth quarter Tuesday.