BRANDON CLARKE

Jaren Jackson Jr., Desmond Bane and Tyus Jones each scored 21 points and the Memphis Grizzlies routed the Golden State Warriors 134-95 on Wednesday night to avoid elimination and force a sixth game in the Western Conference semifinal.

Golden State Warriors Draymond Green was ejected from Game 1 of the second-round playoffs against the Memphis Grizzlies for making contact with ​​Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke's face and then pulling down Clarke's jersey. Before leaving the FedExForum court, Green danced around and encouraged the Grizzlies fans to react. Green also flipped off Grizzlies fans for booing him as blood ran down his face after he took an elbow to the eye.

Stephen Curry had a message for Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. after the Golden State Warriors took Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal against the Memphis Grizzlies.

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.

Game 1 showed that whoever wins the 1-on-1 scoring battle between Memphis’ Ja Morant and Stephen Curry of the Warriors doesn’t mean their team will win the game or their Western Conference semifinal.

Klay Thompson hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 36 seconds left, and the Golden State Warriors overcame Draymond Green’s first-half ejection to edge the Memphis Grizzlies 117-116 on Sunday in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals.

Golden State forward Draymond Green has been ejected shortly before halftime of Game 1 against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Splash Brothers Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have the Golden State Warriors in their seventh Western Conference semifinal in 10 seasons.

Desmond Bane and Dillon Brooks each scored 23 points to steer a third fourth-quarter comeback victory in the series by the Memphis Grizzlies, who eliminated the Minnesota Timberwolves with a 114-106 victory in Game 6.

Ja Morant scored on a layup with a second left, and the Memphis Grizzlies rallied from 11 points down in the fourth quarter to edge the Minnesota Timberwolves 111-109 and grab a 3-2 lead in their first-round Western Conference series.

Karl-Anthony Towns rebounded from two rough games with a career playoff-best 33 points and 14 rebounds, helping the Minnesota Timberwolves pull out a 119-118 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.

Desmond Bane made seven 3-pointers and had 26 points and the Memphis Grizzlies overcame a 26-point deficit to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 104-95 on Thursday night for a 2-1 lead in the first-round playoff series.

Ja Morant scored 23 points and handed out 10 assists as the Memphis Grizzlies looked much more like the team that posted the NBA’s second-best record, routing the Minnesota Timberwolves 124-96 to even up their first-round Western Conference series at 1 apiece.

Anthony Edwards scored 36 points in his postseason debut, and the seventh-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves stunned the No. 2 seed Memphis Grizzlies 130-117 to grab home-court advantage in the opener of their first-round Western Conference series.

Ja Morant had 21 points and nine assists in his return from soreness in his right knee, Dillon Brooks scored 23 points and the Memphis Grizzlies routed the New Orleans Pelicans 141-114 on Saturday night to tie the 2012-13 franchise record for victories in a season at 56.

Desmond Bane had 24 points and the Memphis Grizzlies overcame the absence of star Ja Morant with balanced scoring in a 122-98 victory over the NBA-worst Houston Rockets on Sunday.

Kevin Porter Jr. scored 29 points, Christian Wood added 28 points and 13 rebounds and the Houston Rockets beat the Memphis Grizzlies 123-112 on Saturday night to end a 12-game losing streak.

Ja Morant threw down a massive dunk over 7-footer Jakob Poeltl and scored a career-high 52 points, lifting the Memphis Grizzlies over the San Antonio Spurs 118-105.

Luka Doncic had a triple-double with 27 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists and the Dallas Mavericks used a second-half rally to rout Memphis 112-85 on Friday night, ending the Grizzlies’ winning streak at 11 games.

Desmond Bane scored 21 points, Jaren Jackson Jr. added 20 and the Memphis Grizzlies pulled away in the final minutes for their 11th straight victory, beating the Minnesota Timberwolves 116-108 on Thursday night.

Ja Morant scored 36 points and five Grizzlies scored in double figures as Memphis extended its winning streak to five games with a 118-104 win over the Brooklyn Nets.

Nikola Jokic scored 47 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer late in the second overtime, and the Denver Nuggets rallied to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 139-137.

Houston Rockets guard John Wall, left, handles the ball against Memphis Grizzlies forward Kyle Anderson in the second half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)MEMPHIS, Tenn. – John Wall scored 22 points, Eric Gordon added 20 and the Houston Rockets beat the Memphis Grizzlies 115-103 on Thursday night. Wall said the veteran Rockets have told Tate, a rookie, to stay within his game and take advantage of his shots, particularly corner 3s. Rookie Desmond Bane led the Grizzlies with 16 points, while Ja Morant added 15. After shooting 26% from 3-point range against the Thunder, the Rockets were 19 of 45 (42.2%) against Memphis. For the Houston game, select groups of season ticket holders were added to the previous groups, meaning up to 2,000 people or about 11% of capacity.

It has been a major factor in the decisions to postpone 20 games so far this season, including the latest three Memphis Grizzlies’ games that the league decided Thursday to push back. The biggest culprits that have led to players being flagged and ruled out during the contact tracing process: meals and shared rides, improper mask usage. “Contact tracing involves a lot of different sources and information,” Weiss said. That decision came one day after the Grizzlies’ game at Portland, scheduled for Wednesday, was also called off. Washington — which will go at least 13 days between games after a half-dozen of its players tested positive — has seen six games called off, and Memphis has now had five of its games pushed back.

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, right, wears a boot on his left foot after suffering an injury during the team's NBA basketball game against the Brooklyn Nets, Monday, Dec. 28, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)NEW YORK – Ja Morant exited with a sprained ankle but the Memphis Grizzlies earned their first victory of the season without him, outlasting the short-handed Brooklyn Nets 116-111 in overtime Monday night. Morant rejoined his teammates on the bench in the second half with his foot in a walking boot. Kyle Anderson scored a career-high 28 points and Dillon Brooks added 24 for the Grizzlies, who had dropped their first two games. The Nets opened a six-game homestand, their longest since playing six straight games at Barclays Center during the 2015-16 season.

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, right, drives past Brooklyn Nets guard Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (9) as Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke (15) sets a screen during the first half of an NBA basketball game Monday, Dec. 28, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)NEW YORK – Rookie of the Year Ja Morant left the court area in a wheelchair Monday night after spraining his left ankle in the first half of the Memphis Grizzlies' game in Brooklyn. Morant jumped to block a shot by Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot and appeared to land on the Nets forward's foot. He immediately hopped off the floor in pain and was wheeled to the back, unable to put any weight on his foot. Morant was off to a strong start in his second season, scoring a career-best 44 points in the season opener and following with 28 more in his second game.

(AP Photo/Mike Ehrmann, Pool, File)LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. The first three baskets of Memphis season set the tone for Ja Morants rookie year. Morant was announced Thursday as the runaway winner of the rookie of the year award for 2019-20, the first Grizzlies player to win the award since Pau Gasol in 2001-02. Morant averaged 17.8 points and 7.3 assists this season, picking up three Western Conference rookie of the month awards along the way. 1 pick in the 2019 draft missed much of his rookie season while dealing with injury. Memphis lost the first and only game of that series to Portland, meaning the Grizzlies were just two wins shy of the postseason.

Portland finished eighth in the West, Memphis was ninth, and the Grizzlies needed to sweep a two-game matchup to advance. They had a chance, up eight in the final quarter, before Portland did what Portland does in the bubble find a way at the end. The Grizzlies' 42-point third quarter matched the second-highest scoring period of the season for Memphis and was the second-highest scoring third quarter in franchise history. LOOKING AHEADThe Lakers went 2-1 against the Blazers this season, with the road team winning all three games. Anthony Davis (32.0 ppg) and LeBron James (24.7 ppg) led the Lakers; Lillard (36.0 ppg) and Whiteside (22.0 ppg) led the Blazers.

The Grizzlies missed another chance to guarantee themselves a spot in the Western Conference play-in series, and could fall out of eighth place if Portland beats Dallas later Tuesday. The Grizzlies arrived in Florida with 3 1/2-game cushion over their nearest competitor for the eighth seed in the West. But their struggles have guaranteed the need for a play-in game for that final spot with Portland, San Antonio and Phoenix all still in contention. Memphis will head into its final seeding game against Milwaukee on Thursday needing a win to earn a place in the play-in game. Boston held the Grizzlies to 33% (17 of 51) shooting in the half, including 1 of 13 (7.7%) from the 3-point line.

Lillard finished with 29 points and nine assists as the Trail Blazers boosted their hopes for a seventh consecutive playoff appearance. Carmelo Anthony added 21 points as Portland moved within 2 1/2 games of the Grizzlies for the No. Everybody knew how important that game was," Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. Jaren Jackson Jr. had 33 points and rookie Ja Morant added 22 points and 11 assists for Memphis. It was a weird game," McCollum said.