SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The number of candidates the Utah Jazz could face in the first round was cut in half Wednesday night as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Golden State Warriors, and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the San Antonio Spurs.
Now, the Lakers advance to face the second-seeded Phoenix Suns, as the Jazz await the outcome of Friday night’s second play-in tournament game between the Warriors and Grizzlies.
The Jazz will open the first-round series against either the Warriors or the Grizzlies Sunday night at 7:30 pm MT.
Jazz Avoid Lebron, Lakers Down Warriors
LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Warriors in an instant classic, erasing a double-digit halftime deficit to squeak out a 103-100 victory.
The Lakers stars struggled for most of the night, with James and Davis combining to score just 26 points on 9-29 shooting through the first three quarters of the game.
However, the future Hall of Famers took over in the final period, combining for 21 points on 8-12 shooting and outscoring the Warriors 61-45 in the second half.
Steph Curry scored 37 points while Andrew Wiggins added 21, but the other Warriors starter shot just 6-21 from the floor for 18 combined points, dooming the Golden State offense.
Grizzlies Eliminate Spurs
The Grizzlies avoided a similar fate to the Warriors, fending off a furious Spurs comeback to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Memphis led San Antonio by as much as 21 in the first quarter after jumping out to a 27-6 lead to open the game, but survived late in the fourth quarter defeating the Spurs 100-96.
Dillon Brooks had 24 points and seven rebounds while Jonas Valancuius scored 23 points and grabbed 23 rebounds in the Memphis win.
DeMar DeRozan and Rudy Gay each had 20 points for the Spurs, but combined to shoot just 13-42 from the floor in the loss.
Friday Matchup:
The Grizzlies now travel to Golden State to face the Warriors on Friday night with the winner advancing to play the Jazz on Sunday night in Salt Lake City.
The Warriors won the season series over the Grizzlies two games to one, including a victory on Sunday that clinched the eighth seed for Golden State.
The game will tip off Friday at 7 pm MT on ESPN.
