Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots against Memphis Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks (24) and guard De’Anthony Melton (0) at the Fed Ex Forum in Memphis on Sun May 1, 2022 (AP News photo)

Warriors Win Thriller In Memphis 117-116

By Barbara Mason

Ever since the Golden State Warriors finished off their series with the Denver Nuggets winning 4-1 the Warriors had all been wondering who their opponent in the semifinals would be. Friday night they got their answer when the Memphis Grizzlies finished off the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106 winning the series 4-2.

This semifinal series started on the road for the Warriors at Fed Ex Forum winning the first game of the series in a narrow 117-116 victory to take a 1-0 lead. Golden State played in their seventh Western Conference semifinal in ten seasons.

The Warriors were healthy and ready for this game against a young, deep talented Memphis team. There is a history here. The Warriors rallied from a 2-1 deficit in the second round against Memphis back in 2015.

Ja Morant has put a real spark into the Grizzlies leading them into the semis for the first time in seven years. Their backcourt is one of the best in basketball making them an incredibly confident team. Dillon Brooks, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane are very strong offensive players for Memphis. They kept the Golden State defense on their toes throughout the contest.

The Warriors were coming off of a three day pause and were well aware of the challenge that lied ahead of them. This was kind of a role reversal with the Warriors coming in as a group of experienced veterans and the Grizzlies the youngsters.

In 2015 it was the opposite way around with Golden State being the younger team. Will the vast playoff experience help the Warriors in this series? We soon found out in this highly anticipated series.

Game 1 recap: The wait was finally over and the first quarter got underway. Memphis came out strong and led after 12 minutes 32-24. The Grizzlies extended their lead at the half 61-55.

The Warriors suffered a heavy blow when with 1:18 left in the second quarter Draymond Green was ejected from the game after committing a flagrant foul which was suspect at best. After two quarters of basketball the Warriors would have to dig deep especially with the loss of Green.

The Warriors won the third quarter 36-29 and took the lead after three 91-90 in a tight contest. The team was visibly upset after the ejection but pulled it together playing some great offense. One quarter remained in this game that Golden State wanted badly to win.

Jordan Poole was shooting lights out and was leading the team in shooting. He was single handedly trying to will his team to the win.

With 3:20 left in this game it was a dead heat tied at 108. At two minutes it was a tie 112-112 in a crazy Game One. With 1:17 left in the game the tie remained 114-114. The Warriors took a one point lead with 3.6 left on the clock. Ja Morant would miss a two point shot and the Warriors had won a hard-fought road game against a very tough Grizzly team.

Ja Morant was the high score for the Grizzlies with 34 points followed by Jaren Jackson Jr. with 33. Either team was in position to take this game and it all came down to that one missed shot by Morant who does not miss very often. It could have come down to youth and inexperience in that final shot.

Poole was the hero of this game with 31 points in 38 minutes. He was 5 of 10 from downtown in a brilliant game by the 22-year-old. Stephen Curry finished with 24 points and hung in there with five personal fouls.

Wiggins, Poole and Porter Jr. all had eight rebounds apiece in a nice defensive effort. While there is lots of room for improvement this was a great start in this series for Golden State. A road win in the NBA semifinals is huge for any team.

Game Two of this series is scheduled for Tuesday May 3rd in Memphis. Tipoff is 6:30 PM.