MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Marc Gasol had 26 points and 14 rebounds as the Memphis Grizzlies advanced to the Western Conference semifinals by beating the Portland Trail Blazers 99-93 on Wednesday night.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Marc Gasol had 26 points and 14 rebounds as the Memphis Grizzlies advanced to the Western Conference semifinals by beating the Portland Trail Blazers 99-93 on Wednesday night.
The Grizzlies reached the West semifinals for the third time in five years. They will play Game 1 on Sunday at Golden State.
Memphis closed out Portland in five games despite not having point guard Mike Conley for a second straight game as he recovers from surgery to repair broken bones near his left eye.
Courtney Lee added 20 points for Memphis, Zach Randolph had 16 and Jeff Green added 10 off the bench.
CJ McCollum led Portland with a career-high 33 points. Damian Lillard had 22 points, and LaMarcus Aldridge had 14 before fouling out late as they combined to shoot 13 of 37. The Trail Blazers lost in the first round for the seventh time in their last eight postseasons.
HAWKS 107, NETS 97
ATLANTA — Al Horford and Jeff Teague scored 20 points apiece, helping top-seeded Atlanta hold off Brooklyn in an NBA playoff series that’s closer than anyone envisioned.
Shaking off a dislocated finger, Horford flew around the court in the fourth quarter when it looked like Brooklyn was on the verge of bouncing all the way back from an early 17-point deficit. In the final minute, Teague darted into the lane for a couple of baskets that sealed another hard-fought victory.
Atlanta leads 3-2 in the best-of-seven series, which heads back to Brooklyn for Game 6 Friday night. The Hawks can wrap it up, but the eighth-seeded Nets seem intent on taking it to the limit.
Alan Anderson led the Nets with 23 points off the bench. Jarrett Jack added 18 as the Brooklyn backups totally dominated Atlanta’s reserves.
DeMarre Carroll scored 24 points, pushing the Hawks out to a big lead. But the Nets, as they did in each of the first two games in Atlanta, came back to make it another close one.
Thunder, Donovan
in talks about
coaching vacancy
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida coach Billy Donovan is entertaining a move to the NBA again.
This time with the Oklahoma City Thunder, a person familiar with the search said.
Eight years after leaving Florida to coach the Orlando Magic and then changing his mind the following day, he appears poised to make the jump and not look back this time.
Donovan spent Wednesday in talks with the Thunder about their coaching vacancy, the person told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because details of the search have not been released.
The person said Donovan and Thunder general manager Sam Presti have spoken repeatedly about the job, which came open when Scott Brooks was fired last week, but that there is “still big-picture stuff” to work out before contract negotiations could begin.
Donovan did not respond to text messages or a phone call from the AP seeking comment Wednesday.
Timberwolves’ Wiggins named NBA’s top rookie
Minnesota Timberwolves forward Andrew Wiggins will be named NBA rookie of the year Thursday.
The person spoke Wednesday on condition of anonymity because an official announcement has not been made.
After coming to the Timberwolves in the trade that sent Kevin Love to Cleveland, Wiggins averaged 16.9 points and 4.6 rebounds while playing all 82 games in his first season.
Kevin Love has shoulder surgery, sidelined 4-to-6 months
Kevin Love had surgery Wednesday in New York to repair his dislocated shoulder and will miss the rest of the postseason. His estimated recovery time is 4 to 6 months.
Love had the procedure at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. It was performed by Dr. David Altchek, who is not affiliated with the Cavs medical team or the Cleveland Clinic. Love’s follow-up care will be provided by the Cavs’ medical staff and head team physician Dr. Richard Parker.
The given timeline makes it possible recovery could interfere with training camp and the start of next season, which typically begins around the end of October. Love, incidentally, has a player option on his contract and can become a free agent this summer.
By wire sources