MEMPHIS – Ja Morant and the upstart Memphis Grizzlies have shown they can finish fourth quarters this postseason.
Well, the Golden State Warriors have been doing this for years in the NBA playoffs – and they have the championships to prove it.
Klay Thompson hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 36 seconds left, and the Warriors overcame Draymond Green’s first-half ejection to edge the Grizzlies 117-116 on Sunday in the opener of a Western Conference semifinal series. Game 2 of the best-of-seven set is Tuesday night in Memphis.
“The core, we’ve got championship DNA, and we wanted to utilize that,” Golden State guard Stephen Curry said. “At this stage, that’s what it’s all about. Never let go of the rope in terms of feeling like you’re out of a game. Big win for us.”
Jordan Poole led the Warriors with a career-high 31 points off the bench, shooting 5-of-10 from 3-point range for his best such showing in the playoffs. Curry added 24 points, Andrew Wiggins had 17 and Thompson finished with 15.