Memphis Grizzlies survive San Antonio Spurs in Play-In Tournament
There's a party on Beale Street tonight.
The ninth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies took down the 10th-seeded San Antonio Spurs 100-96 on Wednesday, eliminating San Antonio from the playoffs and keeping Memphis in the hunt for the eighth seed in the Western Conference.
The Grizzlies sit one win away from securing a spot in the West playoff bracket. Let's take a look at how they secured their first win of the Play-In Tournament.
Key performer: Dillon Brooks
Brooks was on fire out of the gate, scoring 24 points with seven rebounds and three assists. He came into the game averaging 17.2 PPG in the 2020-21 regular season.
The 25-year-old small forward was just as impressive on defense as he was on the offensive front. Brooks’ defensive efforts held Spurs shooting guard DeMar DeRozan to 0% field-goal shooting in the first half.
Turning point: The first quarter
The Grizzlies led by as many as 21 points in the first quarter, but the Spurs stormed all the way back.
After having led 2-0, San Antonio took its second lead of the game, 80-79, at the 8:30 mark of the fourth quarter. From that point on, however, the Grizzlies outscored the Spurs 21-16 to win the game.
Wild card: DeRozan's shooting
DeRozan shot 49.5% from the field this season but fell way below that Wednesday. Against San Antonio, he finished with just a 23.8 FG%, 20 points, three rebounds and three assists.
Did you know?
This is the first time in franchise history (both ABA and NBA) that the Spurs failed to make the playoffs in back-to-back seasons.
Twitter's take:
What's next: The Grizzlies await the loser of the Warriors-Lakers matchup for their second play-in game on Friday.
That game will determine which team gets the eighth and final spot in the Western Conference playoffs.
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