'Game 6' Klay Thompson leads Warriors to the NBA Western Conference Finals
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Golden State star Klay Thompson scored 30 points and Kevon Looney grabbed 22 rebounds, 11 on the offensive glass, Friday night to lead the Warriors to a 110-96 Game 6 victory over Memphis to advance to the Western Conference finals.
It was Thompson's fourth career postseason game with eight 3s — tying Ray Allen, Steph Curry, and Damian Lillard for most in NBA history.
"Honestly, especially the perspective I've gained from the injuries I've had, to now be able to compete at highest level and be one of the final four teams, it's a feeling that's hard to describe honestly," Thompson said. "It's truly amazing and it just inspires me to keep going because I think we still have great basketball ahead of me."
Thompson is back shining in the playoffs after his 2 1/2-year absence with a pair of serious injuries, first recovering from surgery for a torn ACL in his left knee and then an operation for a torn right Achilles tendon.
"That's Klay. He expects to go out there and play great," said assistant coach Mike Brown, who took over head coaching duties for the ailing Steve Kerr. "We expect him to go out there and play great."
Golden State moves on to its sixth NBA Western Conference finals in the last eight years. They will play the winner of the Game 7 showdown between the Dallas Mavericks and the Phoenix Suns.
In a seesaw game, it wasn't until a Curry 3-pointer with 5:43 to go, putting Golden State up 95-89, that the Warriors were able to break the will of a young Grizzlies squad playing without their star Ja Morant.
Golden State needed everything they got from Thompson to overcome 17 turnovers and 14-of-42 shooting night from Curry and Jordan Poole combined.
Curry found his shooting touch late in the game to finish with 29 points. Draymond Green added 14 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists.
With Thompson scoring 17 points, the Warriors shook off their offensive woes of Games 4 and 5 to take 53-51 halftime lead by closing on a 9-0 run. But the Grizzlies hung tough, even taking a short lived lead in the second quarter, as Dillon Brooks shook off his own shooting woes, scoring 18 points and going 5-of-10 from the three-point line.
Brooks ended the game with 30 points on 11-of-28 shooting and played solid defense all night on Poole.
After Wednesday's 134-95 debacle on the Grizzlies' home floor in which they trailed by as many as 55, the Warriors were determined to do everything better.
Desmond Bane scored the first two baskets of the game before the Warriors ran off 10 consecutive points, with a pair of layups by Green and a 3 by both Curry and Thompson.
Brown at the urging of Green and Curry decided to start Looney at center and the decision paid off with Golden State owning a 70-44 advantage on the boards.
Looney started after Jonathan Kuminga had the previous three games following the injury to guard Gary Payton II. He broke his left elbow in an awkward fall after being hit over the head by Brooks in Game 2 that earned Brooks a Flagrant 2 foul and one-game suspension.
He was booed loudly again at every chance by the sellout crowd at Chase Center. When Payton was shown on the big screen during a first-quarter timeout he received a rousing ovation and touched his hand to his heart before encouraging them to get louder.
Brooks considered the challenge of facing the Splash Brothers something that will only make Memphis better. And took one last shot at the Warriors.
"They know that we're going to come every single year," he said. "We're young, they're getting old so they know we're coming every single year."