LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Jonas Valanciunas and Ja Morant had triple-doubles and the Memphis Grizzlies kept their season alive Thursday with a 119-106 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, who were missing star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo after he was suspended for head-butting an opponent.
Dillon Brooks added 31 points as Memphis posted its second wire-to-wire win of the season and wrapped up a spot in the play-in round that will determine the eighth and final seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
The Grizzies (34-39) finished in a tie for ninth place with Phoenix but owned the head-to-head tiebreaker.
The play-in round matches the No. 8 team against the No. 9 team. Memphis must beat Portland, the No. 8 team, two straight times to advance to face the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers in the first round.
Valanciunas had 26 points, 19 rebounds and 12 assists for his first triple-double in his 559th career game. The 28-year-old Valanciunas’ previous career high in assists was five.
Morant finished with 12 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists.
TRAIL BLAZERS 134, NETS 133: Damian Lillard sent Portland into the NBA’s first play-in series with 42 more points and a crucial steal, helping the Trail Blazers escape with a victory over Brooklyn.
The Trail Blazers secured the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference only after Brooklyn’s Caris LeVert, who scored 37 points, missed a jumper just before time expired. Portland will play ninth-seeded Memphis on Saturday. If the Grizzlies win, the deciding game would be Sunday.
SUNS 128, MAVERICKS 102: Devin Booker scored 27 points and Phoenix rolled past Dallas to temporarily keep its playoff hopes alive and finish as the only unbeaten team in the restart.
Despite their 8-0 record at Disney World, the Suns were knocked out of the playoffs by Portland’s win.
JAZZ 118, SPURS 112: With its record-tying run of 22 consecutive playoff appearances already over because of earlier wins by Memphis and Phoenix, San Antonio lost its season finale to Utah.
Rayjon Tucker had 18 points for the Jazz, who finished with eight players in double figures while using their regulars either sparingly or not at all.
KINGS 136, LAKERS 132: Buddy Hield scored 28 points, including a 3-pointer that capped Sacramento’s streak of 11 consecutive baskets made in the third quarter, and the Kings ended their season with a win over Los Angeles.
Bogdan Bogdanovic had 27 points as the Kings won for only the third time in the NBA restart. The Kings made 21 3-pointers.
The Lakers had their focus on the playoffs. Most Lakers starters were held out, but LeBron James scored 17 points in 15 minutes, all in the first half.
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