Written by Thomas | Tuesday, May 10th, 2011

This series is tied as they go to Game 5 at the Oklahoma City Arena in Oklahoma City on Wednesday, May 11, 2011.

Fresh off a triple overtime game on Monday where several memorable and outstanding performances took place. Five players logged more minutes than a regulation game as Kevin Durant played 57 minutes and Russell Westbrook was on the floor for 51 minutes of play. In Game 4 the Grizzlies held an 18 point lead in the first half slip away and then the Thunder held a 10 point lead in the fourth quarter only to see it slide into several overtimes. Now each team has to play with one day of rest after logging all those minutes on their legs.

Oklahoma City was paced by Westbrook pouring in 40 points in the game and limited his turnovers to just three after compiling 18 in the first three games. Kevin Durant scored 35 points in the game as he is averaging 30.9 points per game in nine playoff contests. James Harden had a great night off the bench as he was 10 for 10 from the charity stripe and ended with 19 points.

The Thunder received great contributions from Nick Collison with four points and five rebounds along with some outstanding defense. When Collison was on the court the Thunder scored 22 more points than the Grizzlies. Some of the players that struggled were Serge Ibaka with seven points and Kendrick Perkins adding four points and fouling out of the game.

Memphis kept fighting back several times during the game as Mike Conley hit a big shot near the end of regulation and Greivis Vasquez also nailed a 3-pointer in the first overtime to keep the game going for the Grizzlies. Leading the team in the game was Zach Randolph and his 34 points along with 16 boards and Marc Gasol adding 26 points and grabbing an impressive 21 rebounds for the game. This is the sixth time the two of them have each had a double-double in the playoffs.

Gasol has come up big in the playoffs as he averages just over 11 points during the regular season and has moved that to 18 for the playoffs. Randolph is averaging 23.3 points in the 10 playoff games this season. One of the factors that led to the demise of Memphis in overtime was the guard combo of O.J. Mayo and Mike Conley each fouling out. They added 34 points combined in scoring while they were in the game.

This is a fun series to watch as both teams are playing hard and attempting to make it to the finals for the first time. Randolph is a beast to keep off the boards but is countered by Durant on the other end. With the game moving to Oklahoma City that has to bode well for the Thunder to continue their fine play.

Memphis has to hunker down on defense and keep Westbrook from knocking down the 3-ball as he did in Game 4 of the best-of-seven series. We like OKC to win the game but the odds find Memphis +6.5 and there is not that much difference between the two teams to warrant a mild blowout. With our free pick we are telling you to bet Memphis +6.5 and check out any of our online sportsbooks for top sites to bet the game at tonight.

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