Oklahoma City Thunder Stage Incredible Comeback To Defeat Memphis Grizzlies After Ja Morant Injury

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In a thrilling comeback, the Oklahoma City Thunder overcame a 29-point deficit to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies 114-108. This victory gave them a 3-0 lead in their first-round series. Chet Holmgren was instrumental, scoring 23 of his 24 points in the second half. Ja Morant's exit due to a hip injury was pivotal, as Memphis struggled without him.

Morant's injury occurred just over three minutes before halftime when Memphis led 67-40. Despite his absence, they managed one more basket before halftime, maintaining a 26-point lead. However, Oklahoma City's resilience shone through as they took control in the fourth quarter. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led with 31 points, while Jalen Williams added 26.

The Thunder's comeback is now the second-largest in NBA postseason history since play-by-play data began in the 1996-97 season. The only larger comeback was by the Los Angeles Clippers against Golden State in April 2019. Oklahoma City had previously won Game 1 with a significant margin of victory and now aims to close out the series on Saturday.

Scotty Pippen led Memphis with 28 points, just shy of his career high. Jaren Jackson Jr. contributed 22 points for Memphis, but their substantial lead vanished after Morant's injury. Morant fell hard under the basket during a fast break and was ruled out early in the second half with a left hip contusion.

Kawhi Leonard scored 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as the Los Angeles Clippers secured a convincing 117-83 win over Denver Nuggets. This victory gave them a 2-1 lead in their playoff series. James Harden and Norman Powell each added 20 points for the Clippers at their new Intuit Dome arena.

Nikola Jokic led Denver with another triple-double, scoring 23 points along with 13 rebounds and assists each. Jamal Murray also contributed with another 23 points for Denver. Despite an early seven-point lead by Denver, the Clippers surged ahead by outscoring them significantly towards the end of the first quarter.

Knicks Edge Past Pistons

Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson were key players for New York Knicks as they narrowly defeated Detroit Pistons 118-116 to take a series lead of 2-1. Towns scored an impressive total of 31 points while Brunson added another crucial contribution with his own tally reaching up to thirty.

The Pistons have now lost eight consecutive home playoff games since their last win back in '08 which puts them within one loss away from matching Philadelphia’s record set between '68-'71 seasons! Cade Cunningham tried hard but missed several shots resulting ultimately six turnovers throughout this game too!

The Knicks regained home-court advantage after losing it earlier when Detroit won Game Two ending their fifteen-game playoff losing streak record! Tim Hardaway Jr.'s late three-pointer brought Detroit within three but ultimately wasn’t enough against New York’s strong finish led by Brunson’s clutch plays down stretch securing victory!

The Clippers' bench outperformed Denver’s reserves significantly contributing towards this decisive win while also dominating boards overall throughout match-up! Their next encounter scheduled Saturday promises more excitement especially given how closely contested initial games were prior today’s blowout result favoring L.A side instead!