The No. 1 Golden State Warriors (5-1 SU, 2-4 ATS) look to bounce back from an awful shooting night when they visit the No. 5 Memphis Grizzlies (5-2 SU, 4-2-1 ATS) Saturday in Game Three of their Western Conference semifinal. You can watch the game live on ABC.
Losing for just the third time in 45 home games the Warriors relinquished homecourt advantage and saw their semifinal series even up at 1-1 after a 97-90 loss Tuesday. The Warriors experienced their worst shooting night in sometime and produced their lowest point total in a home game this season. The Warriors have played the under in each of their last three games and the under is 4-1-1 in their six postseason games.
Memphis welcomed back point guard Mike Conley and his presence sparked a dominating defensive performance to help the Grizzlies even the series. The underdog Grizzlies now return home and can put the NBA’s best team in a hole with a win Saturday. The Griz have won seven of their last eight at home following a loss to Golden State on Mar. 27 and are 6-1-1 ATS in that stretch.
KEY INJURY
Listed as questionable prior to Tuesday’s game, Grizzlies guard Mike Conley, donning a clear protective face mask, started and provided his team with a spark. Conley avoided contact until the second quarter when Draymond Green hit him in the face reaching for the ball. He also left late in the game with leg cramps but his job was done by that point.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“You’re going to have bad shooting nights. It happens. We have to keep our confidence and make adjustments to how we get our shots. We’re not going to overreact to one bad shooting night.” – Warriors guard Stephen Curry
BETTING TRENDS
- Golden State is 3-9 ATS in its last 12 games overall.
- Memphis is 6-1-1 ATS in its last eight home games.
- The UNDER is 13-4 in Memphis’ last 17 games overall.
KEY STATS
1: Golden State lost for the first time this season when allowing fewer than 100 points. The Warriors had been 44-0 before Tuesday.
2: The Grizzlies are just the second team to beat the Warriors twice this season joining the San Antonio Spurs, who took two of three regular season games. Memphis defeated Golden State 105-98 on Dec. 16 in the first of three regular season games between the clubs.
3: Golden State’s Splash Brothers were a combined 3 for 17 on three-point shots Tuesday. Stephen Curry was 2 of 11 and Klay Thompson went 1 of 6.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
The Golden State Warriors probably wished they had waited until after the playoffs to honor Stephen Curry with his MVP award. Curry was presented the trophy prior to Tuesday’s game and promptly laid an egg with one of his poorest shooting nights of the season in a 97-90 loss to even the series. Curry was seven of 19 from the field and made just two of 11 three-pointers in the game and had more turnovers (3) than made threes. But it wasn’t just Curry who got all giddy by the pregame ceremony. Fellow Splash Brother Klay Thompson was equally bad making one of six threes and six of 15 overall.
The masked man helped the Grizzlies steal a game in Northern California giving Memphis the upper-hand on the top-seeded Warriors. Wearing a clear plastic mask to protect his face and still swollen eye, Mike Conley returned to the lineup just eight days after facial surgery to score 22 points and supplied smothering defense along with an emotional lift for the underdog Griz. “Tremendous heart. He gave us an extra element,” coach Dave Joerger said of his point guard.
Depending on who you talk to it was either poor shooting by the Warriors or smothering defense by the Grizzlies. Let’s take the easy way out and say a little of both. The Warriors won’t shoot this poorly again and you know the Grizzlies aren’t going to back off after turning the Splash into a small ripple. Game Three is now the pivotal contest in the series. The Griz have beaten the Warriors on their floor already this season and need to take advantage of the homecourt edge. Can the Dubs shake off the poor shooting from Tuesday and return to form? Like coach Joerger said, Conley gives the Griz an extra element and they ride him for another game.
Memphis 104, Golden State 101
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