The reward for getting the West's No. 8 seed through the play-in format? A first-round series vs. Oklahoma City, which set a franchise mark for wins.

Ja Morant scored 22 points despite playing with a sprained right ankle, helping send the Mavericks home and the Grizzlies to a first-round playoff series with the Thunder.

The Grizzlies started the second quarter on an 8-0 run with Desmond Bane hitting a deep three from the right wing to force a timeout from Jason Kidd. They were growing this lead with Ja Morant on the bench, and with as big of a lead as they had, they could pick and choose how to play him to try and save him for Sunday if they went on to win.