Game 1 between the fourth-seeded Portland Trail Blazers and No. 5 Memphis Grizzlies was the flexing of a pretty healthy, tough team in the Grizzlies against the whimper of a Blazers team that's missing two significant role players. The Grizzlies beat them up and knocked them down as they cruised to a pretty easy victory. It left you wondering if the Blazers had enough health and fight in them to come back and steal Game 2 in Memphis.
They looked like they were up to the task early on in Game 2 when they jumped out to a 10-2 lead and walked into the second quarter with a 21-19 lead. It wasn't a big lead but it was a much better start than we saw previously. Instead, the Grizzlies were able to grind them down and dominated in the second quarter. By the time we got to the fourth quarter, Portland just didn't have enough to make a consistent run. Memphis finished with a 97-82 victory.
Here's what we learned about the Grizzlies-Blazers series from Game 2:
1. COURTNEY LEE IS THE GRIZZLIES' X-FACTOR
In his last 22 games (including Game 1 against Portland), Courtney Lee had scored in double figures just seven times. After scoring nine points in the first half of Game 2, Lee scored another seven points in a pivotal third quarter when he teamed up with Zach Randolph (eight points in the quarter) to help hold off a run by Portland to get back in this game and control the tempo. Lee finished with 18 points altogether, which ends up becoming a significant benchmark for Grizzlies' success.
When Lee scores 15 points or more this season, Memphis is now 16-1, including Game 2. The only loss came to Utah in March when the Grizzlies were missing Randolph, Beno Udrih, and Tony Allen. Lee's ability to stretch the floor, cut to the basket for great scoring opportunities, and be a presence on the break open up so much for the Grizzlies' offense. Portland has to concentrate so much on stopping Randolph, Marc Gasol, and Mike Conley as it is that a player like Lee can slip through the cracks and take advantage.
He made 8-of-11 from the field, 2-of-3 from 3-point range, and finished with three steals. That's a big time performance from a team beaming with depth right now.
2. WHERE HAS DAMIAN LILLARD BEEN IN THE FIRST TWO GAMES?
If you're wondering why the Blazers' offense has been largely absent in the first two games of the series, the injuries to Wes Matthews and Arron Afflalo certainly hurt. Their ability to stretch the floor gives LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard lots of room to operate. That usually leads to a lot of ball movement in Terry Stotts' system and all of these individual talents find a way to work together perfectly. Unfortunately for the Blazers, they don't have enough depth to absorb these losses and that's taking its toll on Lillard.
He ended up finishing with 18 points thanks to going 7-of-8 from the free throw line in Game 2. But after 79 minutes on the floor in this series, Lillard has just 32 points, four assists, is 1-of-11 (9.0 percent) from 3-point range, and has shot 10-of-37 (27.0 percent) from the field. His abilities to shoot the ball and finish around the basket are simply gone and Aldridge can do only so much to carry this offense against the Grizzlies' defense.
Credit Mike Conley, Tony Allen, and Marc Gasol for corralling Lillard in the half court. Portland's offense has produced just 84 points per game on 36.0 percent from the field, 30.4 percent from 3-point range, and 26 turnovers to 13 for Memphis in the first two games.
3. TONY ALLEN IS WORTH THE PRICE OF ADMISSION
Whether it's good or bad, Grizzlies' guard Tony Allen is always a delight to watch. His ferocious defense on every possession, his turnover dance, and his penchant for the seemingly impossible will grab your eye when you're least expecting it. There's so much good and bad with him that always ends in entertainment.
Example No. 1 from Game 2 is Allen attacking without numbers in transition, finding daylight between a very soft attempt at transition defense by the Blazers, and then Allen air balling a layup attempt when it seemed like he was home free.
But let's not just make fun of a bad moment by Tony. Let's also celebrate his hustle that always grabs the attention and admiration of his teammates. In the fourth quarter of Game 2, Allen helped save an errant basketball from going out of bounds and managed to blindly find Gasol to secure possession. He fell toward his bench after the save and was congratulated by his teammates for his hustle and save as he got back into play.
Grit'N'Grind, y'all.
Game 3 is Saturday in Portland. The Grizzlies lead the series 2-0.
SERIES SCHEDULE
Game 1 – Sun April 19
Memphis 100, Portland 86 - Memphis leads series 1-0
Game 2 – Wed April 22
Memphis 97, Portland 82 - Memphis leads series 2-0
Game 3 – Sat April 25
Memphis at Portland, 10:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 4 – Mon April 27
Memphis at Portland, 10:30 p.m. (TNT)
Game 5 * Wed April 29
Portland at Memphis
Game 6 * Fri May 1
Memphis at Portland
Game 7 * Sun May 3
Portland at Memphis
