MIKE Conley blocked a Ja Morant floater, then countered with a 3-pointer in a late run that allowed the top-seeded Utah Jazz to hold off the host Memphis Grizzlies 120-113 on Monday night (Tuesday in Manila) in Game 4 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series.
A third straight win gives Utah a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series and creates an opportunity for the Jazz to advance to the semifinals with a home win on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila).
Down most of the way but just 110-106 after a Rudy Gobert free throw with 3:57 remaining, Morant attempted to cut the deficit in half with a short shot under heavy pressure from Conley.
But the former Grizzlies star got a hand on the attempt, grabbed the deflection and, 14 seconds later, buried a 26-footer that gave Utah a seven-point advantage and proved to be the backbreaker.
When Morant misfired on a 3-pointer and Bojan Bogdanovic bombed in a 23-footer at the other end, the Jazz had opened a 116-106 lead with just 2:40 to play, allowing the visitors to coast home.
Once again in the series, the big difference in the game came in 3-point shooting, with the Jazz hitting 17 of 34, while the Grizzlies managed to make just 10 of 35.
Donovan Mitchell paced Utah with a game-high 30 points, while Jordan Clarkson hit four 3-pointers to account for a majority of his 24 points.
Gobert finished with 17 points to complement eight rebounds, Royce O’Neale grabbed a team-high nine rebounds to go with nine points, Bogdanovic added 13 points and Conley had seven assists and 11 points for Utah, which last year went up 3-1 in its first-round series in the NBA bubble before losing three straight to Denver.
In the other game, Bradley Beal scored 27 points as the host Washington Wizards staved off elimination with a 122-114 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.
Russell Westbrook made just 3 of 19 shots to finish with 19 points, but he also collected 21 rebounds and 14 assists. It marked Westbrook’s 12th career triple-double in the playoffs, snapping a tie with Hall of Famer Jason Kidd for third place overall in NBA history.
Philadelphia’s bid for its first postseason sweep since 1991 was severely hampered after Joel Embiid sustained a sore right knee following an awkward fall on a drive to the basket in the first quarter. The four-time All-Star center finished with eight points and six rebounds after erupting for a career playoff-high 36 points in the 76ers’ 132-103 win in Game 3.
Washington’s Rui Hachimura collected 20 points and 13 rebounds and Robin Lopez scored 16 points off the bench for the Wizards, who will visit Philadelphia for Game 5 on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila). Davis Bertans scored 12 of his 15 points in the first quarter before exiting in the third quarter with a right calf strain.
