The Golden State Warriors are heading to the Western Conference Finals. They won Game 6 over the Memphis Grizzlies, 108-95, to move onto the conference finals for the first time since 1976. Stephen Curry led the way with 32 points with eight three-point shots and he dished out 10 assists.
Warriors vs. Grizzlies 2015 results: 3 things we learned as Golden State advances
The Warriors await the winner of the Los Angeles Clippers and the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Finals.
Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph had 21 and 15 points, respectively, for the Grizzlies.
The Warriors will face the winner of the series between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Houston Rockets, who play a Game 7 on Sunday.
On Friday, the Warriors came out firing. They hit 6-of-9 from deep in the first quarter and led 32-19 after the frame. And they didn’t slow down in the second quarter. The Grizzlies pulled to within single digits a few times, but the Warriors continued to make shots and led, 58-49, at the half.
The Grizzlies, however, came out firing in the third quarter. They played with urgency and forced the Warriors into their style of play. The warriors could’t do anything against the grind-it-out defense of the Grizzlies and Memphis chipped away at the lead. They held the Warriors to five points through the first eight minutes of the quarter. The Grizzlies got to within one, and were down by just five in the waning seconds of the quarter.
Then Curry did what he does. He hit a shot from the opposite free throw line as time expired:
And the Warriors had an eight-point lead. Even worse, it looked like Green may have been fouled on the play that led to Curry’s shot. It was a huge swing. The Grizzlies outscored the Warriors only 19-18 in the quarter after dominating the frame.
The Warriors didn’t let up. They kept the run going into the fourth and jumped out to a 15-point lead. The Grizzlies tried to stay in it -- they pulled to within eight with six minutes to play -- but Golden State’s offense was clicking again and Curry was hitting his shots.
The Warriors held on down the stretch to win, 108-95. Now they’ll await the winner of the Clippers and the Rockets.
Here’s 3 things we learned:
1. If the Warriors shoot well, they’re unbeatable
They hit 60 percent of their shots in the first half. They led by nine. The third quarter, though, was ugly -- until the very end when Curry hit that deep buzzer beater. They scored just 18 points and started out shooting 2-of-15 from the floor. It looked like the Grizzlies were going to pull it off. But then, Curry and the Warriors caught fire again. The NBA’s MVP could not miss a shot. In the fourth, he hit four threes in a row from 5:46 to 3:39 remaining. They can score in bunches. They ended up shooting 50.6 percent on the night and 46.9 percent from the deep. The Grizzlies were able to contain them for stretches, but it was impossible to do for more than one or two games, let along six.
2. As Draymond Green goes, so go the Warriors
Green was great in the first half when the Warriors built that nine-point lead. In the third quarter, he was turning the ball over and was non-existent defensively -- the Grizzlies pulled to within three. But he, and the Warriors, calmed down and took over in the fourth. Green had a great night with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Harrison Barnes, meanwhile, is often overlooked, but he was a consistent force for the Warriors in this series. When Green struggled, Barnes was there to pick up the slack. Barnes added 13 points and five rebounds, plus a few big shots when the offense was struggling.
3. The Grizzlies’ almost pulled it off, didn’t they?
No one thought they were going to take it six games. But they put some fear into the Warriors, who, in the end, were too good. Credit Steve Kerr and the Warriors' staff for making the adjustments necessary to win three in a row after falling behind 2-1, but this Grizzlies team was very good. They struggled offensively at points, but their grinding, gritty style gave the Warriors fits. It was expected, but this team showed a lot of grit this series. Conley played through injury, Randolph shut down Green for stretches, and Marc Gasol was great down low. The Grizzlies may look different next year, but they were a pleasure to watch this season.
See More:
