National Basketball Association
Memphis 119, Milwaukee 106
When: 4:00 PM ET, Thursday, August 13, 2020
Where: Visa Athletic Center, Orlando, Florida
Officials: #46 Ben Taylor, #8 Marc Davis, #18 Matt Boland
Attendance: 0

Jonas Valanciunas and Ja Morant each recorded a triple-double Thursday afternoon, helping the Memphis Grizzlies gain a spot in the NBA play-in game with a 119-106 victory over the Giannis Antetokounmpo-less Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA bubble.

Dillon Brooks led all scorers with 31 points for the Grizzlies (34-39), who clinched no worse than the ninth seed in the Western Conference.

The Portland Trail Blazers rallied past the Brooklyn Nets later Thursday, claiming the eighth seed and relegating the Grizzlies to the ninth. Portland and Memphis will meet Saturday and, if necessary, Sunday to decide the West's final playoff spot. The Grizzlies must beat the Blazers twice, while Portland must win only once.

The Bucks (56-17) had already clinched the top seed in the East. The playoffs begin Monday, and Milwaukee's opening-round opponent will be eighth-seeded Orlando.

The Bucks are expected to get Antetokounmpo back for the playoffs. He was suspended for one game for head-butting Washington's Moe Wagner on Tuesday.

After a tight first quarter that saw Memphis lead 22-21, the Grizzlies distanced themselves from the East's top team in the second and third periods.

Memphis took a 60-50 advantage into the break, then ran off by as many as 23 points in the third period before coasting home.

Valanciunas finished with 26 points, a game-high 19 rebounds and a career-high 12 assists for his first career triple-double. He had never previously had more than five assists in a game.

The 26 points matched his seventh-most of the season, while the 19 rebounds equaled his second-most.

Morant complemented Valanciunas' feat with his second triple-double of the season, going for 12 points, a career-high 13 rebounds and 10 assists.

Brandon Clarke and Kyle Anderson added 10 points apiece for the Grizzlies, who won for just the second time in eight games in the bubble.

Brook Lopez had team-highs in points with 19 and rebounds with nine for the Bucks, who suffered their fifth loss since the restart in eight games.

Frank Mason III accumulated 18 points to complement a team-high eight assists, while Donte DiVincenzo had 17 points, Khris Middleton 14 and D.J. Wilson 12 for Milwaukee, which was out-shot 50.0 percent to 39.4.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Milwaukee   Memphis
Brook Lopez 19 Scoring Dillon Brooks 31
Frank Mason 8 Assists Jonas Valanciunas 12
Brook Lopez 9 Rebounds Jonas Valanciunas 19
Brook Lopez 5 Free Throws Made Gorgui Dieng 4
Eric Bledsoe 2 Steals Kyle Anderson 2
Brook Lopez 1 Blocks Kyle Anderson 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Milwaukee 106 39.8 13-41 15-23 27 45 3 8 15
Memphis 119 50.0 13-33 16-23 36 55 3 4 18
Upcoming Games
  • Memphis will play their next game on the road against Portland. The Grizzlies have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .436 after a loss.
  • Milwaukee will play their next game at home against Orlando. The Bucks have a W/L % of .772 after a win and .750 after a loss.