Thursday 30 April 2015 07:33, UK
The Memphis Grizzlies are through to the second round of the NBA play-offs after a 99-93 win saw them to a 4-1 series victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Marc Gasol stood out for the Grizzlies with 26 points and 14 rebounds to lead his side into a Western Conference semi-final against the Golden State Warriors.
It will be the third time in five years Memphis have reached this stage of the competition and they got there without point guard Mike Conley for a second straight game as he recovers from surgery to repair broken bones near his left eye.
Courtney Lee weighed in with 20 points for the Grizzlies with Zach Randolph finishing with 16 points.
Portland's CJ McCollum produced a career-high 33 points while Damian Lillard added 22, but their efforts were not enough. It was the seventh time in their last eight preseasons that the Trail Blazers lost in the first round.
The Atlanta Hawks took a 3-2 lead in their series against the Brooklyn Nets after a 107-97 victory.
Jeff Teague impressed with a team-leading eight assists and 20 points despite picking up an ankle injury while Demarre Carroll scored 24 points.
Injury also failed to stop Al Horford as he grabbed 15 rebounds and 20 points despite a dislocated finger.
Alan Anderson impressed off the bench for Brooklyn, scoring 23 points in an ultimately losing cause.
Western Conference
Memphis 99-93 Portland
(Memphis wins series 4-1)
Eastern Conference
Atlanta 107 Brooklyn 97
(Atlanta leads series 3-2)
