On May 2, Beijing time, the Warriors of the Western Conference Semifinals narrowly defeated the Grizzlies 117-116 away from home, leading 1-0 on aggregate. The match was a game of twists and turns, and the referee's partial blowing penalty also caused controversy. Looking at the player stats first, the Warriors' best performance was Poole: 12 of 20 shooting, 5 of 10 three-pointers, 2 of 2 free throws, 31 points, 8 boards, 9 assists and 2 blocks.
In order to defend Morant, Cole made a change of formation in this game, Payton Jr. started, and Poole returned to the bench: Curry, Thompson, Payton Jr., Wiggins and Dream Green. Curry had a mediocre hand, shooting 8-of-20 from the field, 5-of-12 from three-point range, and had 24 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block and 5 fouls. Curry has a plus-minus of -9 and Poole is +10.
With 22 seconds left in the final quarter, the Grizzlies trailed by one point but had the ball in hand, Morant singled out Curry and Payton Jr. came to help. Curry first cut the ball, then completed the block in the air, and the ball returned to the Warriors. After the big hat Morant, Curry roared angrily: "I TM prevented him from killing!" （Locked that s**t up, boy）”
With 6.7 seconds left in the final quarter, the Grizzlies were left to play foul tactics, and Klay scored two free throws, just when all Warriors fans thought they were stable, Klay missed two free throws. The most controversial scene of the game then appeared: Clay did not score the free throw, Payton Jr., JJJ and Dillon scrambled for rebounds, Dillon knocked the ball out of bounds, but the referee said he did not see clearly and blew the scramble.
Dillon's ball is more obvious, and the ball should be returned to the Warriors, but the Warriors' challenges have been used up before. Some fans questioned: Why didn't the referee watch the replay? According to the rules, the referee does not have the right to review the out-of-bounds ball in the last 2 minutes of the game unless the coach challenges it. But even if you don't watch the replay, the ball should be able to see clearly!
In the final 4.8 seconds, JJJ and Wiggins jumped the ball and the Grizzlies got the ball, leaving 3.6 seconds left. The Grizzlies timed on time, Morant deflected a layup, and the Warriors narrowly beat the Grizzlies by one point. Clay scored 6-of-19, 3-of-10 three-pointers and 15 points on 0-of-2 free throws. With 38 seconds left in the final quarter, the Warriors trailed by two points 114-116, and it was Klay who hit the counter-overtaking goal.
Clay's three-pointer + Curry's block, splash brothers one shot and one defense kill the game. But the referee's final penalty almost changed the outcome of the game. Well-known data media Outlet StatMuse wrote: "Interesting fact: The Warriors won G1 on a 5-8. "Number of fouls: Warriors 25, Grizzlies 19. Number of free throws: Grizzlies 24, Warriors 20.
Some people say that just by looking at the number of fouls and free throws, the difference between the two teams is not much. In addition to the final out-of-bounds penalty, the first half was blown to pieces: Curry, Klay and Payton Jr. had three fouls at halftime, and Grizzlies Dillon and JJJ had also made three fouls. The referee adjusted in the second half and no players left the game for 6 fouls.
However, there was one player who was expelled in the first half for malicious fouls, and he was Dream Green. With 1 minute and 18 seconds left in the first half, Green hit Clark's head on defense and then tugged on the latter's shirt, causing Clark to lose his balance and fall! Green was blown up for a second-degree malicious foul and was directly deported.
Some fans felt reasonable, and it was too dangerous to pull that at the end. There are also people who feel that it is enough to give a first-degree malicious foul, there is no need to expel. The referee on duty responded positively: "First Green hit Clark in the face, followed by the fall of Clark to the ground, this action is unnecessary, excessive, so it is a second-degree malicious foul and must be expelled!" ”
Let's get back to the game itself, a big reason the Grizzlies lost was Bane! The Warriors' strategy was to strangle Bane to death and prevent him from taking it easily, with Bane scoring just nine points on 3-of-10 shooting, 5-of-5 from three-point range and 2-of-3 free throws. In the first round of the playoffs, Bain averaged 23.5 points per game, shooting 49.5 percent from the field and 48.2 percent from three-point range.
Morant shot 14-of-31, 4-of-11 from three-point range and 2-of-3 from the free throw line, scoring 34 points, 9 boards, 10 assists and 3 steals. In the final half minute, Morant missed two layups and missed opportunities to rebound and kill. The Grizzlies' best performance was Jaren Jackson Jr., JJJ shot 10 of 18 from the field, 6 of 9 from three-point range and 7 of 9 from the free throw line, scoring 33 points, 10 boards, 1 assist and 1 block.
Coupled with Poole's 31 points, this is the first time in NBA history that three players aged 22 or younger in a single game have scored 30+ in the same game! What do you think the final score of this series is? PS: Today's other Bucks vs Celtics, see the last push for a detailed war report.