The Warriors felt good about themselves when they walked into FedEx Forum Saturday night. They had analyzed their Game 2 loss to Memphis, discovered their errors and set about correcting them.
They failed in Game 3, failed pretty miserably.
Falling behind late in the first quarter and never quite catching up, the Warriors took a 99-89 loss to the Grizzlies and now find themselves down two games to one in this best-of-seven Western Conference Semifinals.
The Warriors made a late charge, getting within four inside the final three minutes, but Memphis held on down the stretch.
Stephen Curry led the Warriors in scoring with 22 points, adding six assists. Klay Thompson put in 20 points and Harrison Barnes at 16.
The Warriors not only missed a countless open shots en route to shooting 43.2 percent (23.1 from deep), but also committed 17 turnovers and were a minus-5 (44-39) in rebounding.
Mostly, though, the Warriors were undone by the terrific work of Memphis big men Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph.
Gasol fouled out with 1:45 left, finishing with 21 points and 15 rebounds, while Randolph posted 22 and eight.
STANDOUT PERFORMER
Though Curry led the team in scoring, nobody among the Warriors played any better than Thompson and Barnes.
Thompson recovered from a brutal Game 2, turned in 8-of-13 shooting, including 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. He also grabbed a team-high-tying eight rebounds and blocked two shots. He finished plus-5 for the game, the only Warrior in the positive.
Barnes finished with 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting. He also grabbed six rebounds.
TURNING POINT
The Warriors held a 20-19 lead inside the final minute of the first quarter, but the Grizzlies closed the quarter with two buckets that triggered a 19-4 run to go up 38-24 with 7:02 left in the half.
The Warriors never got closer than 13 for the rest of the half and trailed by as much as 17 (49-32 at the 3:45 mark) before intermission.
The Warriors got as close as four in the final minutes but never again tied or led.
INJURY UPDATE
Warriors: F Marreese Speights sustained a strained right calf in the third quarter and did not return. C Ognjen Kuzmic (sprained left ankle) and F Brandon Rush (healthy) were placed on the inactive list for the game.
Grizzlies: No injuries were listed before tipoff. G Mike Conley limped off the court in the third quarter but returned with 7:22 left in the fourth.
WHAT'S NEXT
The teams meet Monday night (6:30 Pacific) for Game 4 at FedEx Forum.
