Bane, Morant help Grizzlies stay alive in series with Game 5 win over Lakers

Desmond Bane had 33 points and 10 rebounds, Ja Morant added 31 points and 10 boards, and the Memphis Grizzlies staved off elimination Wednesday night, beating the Lakers 116-99 to force their first-round Western Conference series back to Los Angeles.

Jaren Jackson Jr., the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies, who improved to 5-0 in Game 5s played in Memphis and cut the seventh-seeded Lakers’ series lead to 3-2. Memphis earned a second straight No. 2 seed by posting the NBA’s best home record at 35-6.

Game 6 is Friday night in Los Angeles.

Anthony Davis led the Lakers with 31 points and 19 rebounds. Austin Reaves had 17 points and D’Angelo Russell scored 11. Davis stayed on the court for a few seconds after a layup with 6:01 left that pulled the Lakers within 106-91. When he got up, Davis grabbed at his back as he walked down the court.

The Lakers tried to rally, going on a 20-7 run in the fourth. They couldn’t get closer than 12, the last on a putback by Davis with 2:52 left. Memphis answered with eight straight to get fans chanting “Whoop That Trick” with about 90 seconds left.

Memphis led only 23-20 when coach Taylor Jenkins took out Dillon Brooks, known more for calling James old and missing shots than his defense in this series. The Grizzlies seized control, finishing on a 15-4 run capped by Bane’s 3 just before the quarter expired for a 38-24 lead.

Russell scored the first eight of the third for the Lakers to quickly turn it into a tight game. James, who had nine in the third, hit a pair of free throws that pulled Los Angeles within 75-74 with 4:36 left.

Memphis took control with a 26-2 run that lasted until the start of the fourth. Morant had 11 in the third and finished the quarter with back-to-back buckets. His final drive put the Grizzlies up 94-76 going into the fourth.

Bane capped the spurt with a three-point play for a 101-74 lead.

Knicks dispatch Cavaliers in Game 5

Jalen Brunson scored 23 points, RJ Barrett added 21 and the visiting New York Knicks downed the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-95 in Game 5 on Wednesday night to advance to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs for the first time since 2013.

New York won the opener at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, overpowered the Cavs twice at noisy Madison Square Garden and then returned to Cleveland to finish the job. The fifth-seeded Knicks will meet the Miami-Milwaukee winner next.

Brunson was the consistent ingredient throughout the series for the Knicks, who signed the stocky guard as a free agent last summer before their attempt to acquire Donovan Mitchell in a trade from Utah fell apart and he landed in Cleveland.

Brunson averaged 24 points in the series and led New York in scoring all four wins while outplaying Mitchell for the second straight postseason. Last year, Brunson was with Dallas when he got the best of Mitchell.

Mitchell scored 28 and Darius Garland 21 for the Cavs, who won 51 games during the regular season but whose inexperience showed throughout their first playoff series in five years. The Cavs weren’t ready.

A bigger issue, though, seemed to be Cleveland’s toughness. The Cavs got pushed around and outrebounded in all four losses, including 48-30 in the clincher.

Cleveland hoped to recapture some of its 2016 magic and overcome a 3-1 deficit like LeBron James and the Cavs did in the NBA Finals to shock Golden State. But Brunson, Barrett and the rest of the Knicks had other plans.

They closed out the Cavs in the second half without Randle.

The All-Star forward left late in the second quarter after aggravating a sprained left ankle and didn’t return. Obi Toppin started in his place and scored 12 points in the third quarter as the Knicks opened an 18-point lead.

New York never let Cleveland get closer than six in the fourth, much to the delight of several hundred Knicks fans who celebrated behind their bench.