The San Antonio Spurs won their third game of their first round matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies 96-87 in a close game. Despite a competitive performance from the undermanned Grizz, San Antonio was able to take a huge performance from forward and Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard to get the win and come within one more victory of a sweep.
The first half saw a surprisingly competitive Grizzlies squad keep up with San Antonio. After two straight blowout losses, Memphis came out strong, especially on the defensive end. The revamped energy saw the team hold the Spurs’ starting backcourt duo of Tony Parker and Danny Green to three combined points on 1-8 shooting. Despite big performances from Zach Randolph and Lance Stephenson, the Grizzlies took a one point deficit into halftime. The Spurs were paced by the forward duo of Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge, the mainstays for the team in this series.
The third quarter included similarly competitive play between the two teams as they continuously responded to each other’s attempts at pulling ahead. While he did not shoot the ball well, Grizzlies guard Vince Carter was among the hardest-playing players on the floor, continuously driving to the rim, grabbing rebounds, and playing great defense. Meanwhile, Leonard continued his stellar play on both sides of the floor but the Spurs’ defense became relaxed giving up 28 points in the quarter and going into the fourth with a one point deficit.
The Spurs started to pull away in the fourth quarter with both teams trotting out bench-heavy units. Second year player Kyle Anderson had a strong stretch where his passing, driving to the rim, and run outs after good defense led to three buckets in a row. The Grizzlies meanwhile received an unexpected huge performance from JaMychal Green who finished with 10 points on a perfect 5-5 shooting along with four rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in only 13 minutes of playing time. The Grizzlies continued to battle coming within two points of San Antonio with about four minutes to go, but the Spurs’ late-game execution as well as more Leonard destruction was too much to handle.
The Spurs may have some worries as the Grizzlies routinely hurt them on the boards. The Grizzlies finished with a 55-44 edge on the glass, using offensive rebounds as one of their most effective modes of scoring. But the Spurs had too much Kawhi who finished with 32 points on 11-22 shooting and added seven rebounds, two assists, four steals, and five blocks.
Game four will be played in Memphis on Sunday at 1 PM EST. The game will be televised on ABC.
