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MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Kevin Durant insisted the Thunder facing elimination was all the motivation he needed. Thanks to the NBAs best scorer, the Thunder remain alive and can finish off the Memphis Grizzlies back in Oklahoma City. Durant scored 36 points to break out of a slump, and the Thunder routed the Grizzlies 104-84 on Thursday night to force a deciding seventh game in the first-round Western Conference series. His performance came on a day where the hometown newspaper questioned his struggles with a headline calling him "Mr. Unreliable." "We needed to win this game," Durant said. "Thats more motivation than anything, so our team responded. Weve got to do an even better job in Game 7." Russell Westbrook added 25 points for the Thunder, who havent been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs since 2010. They took control early with Durant scoring 14 points in the first quarter, led by 15 at halftime and never let Memphis get that close again in the second half in the first game in the series that didnt go to overtime since the opener. "You dont get to his level as an NBA player and a great player as he is to have other people motivate you," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "Hes self-motivated. Hes a tremendous kid and does everything for his team, for our organization. Were proud of him because he gives everything he has. That was the only focus for tonights game." Durant also had 10 rebounds and made 14 of 15 free throws. Reggie Jackson had 16 points off the bench for the Thunder, who will host Game 7 on Saturday night. Grizzlies guard Tony Allen said the Thunder simply wanted the game more and called the loss embarrassing in front of a sellout crowd. "Now, weve shot ourselves in the foot, and we have to go to a hostile environment now and pretty much show where our heart is at," Allen said. Marc Gasol had 17 points and Zach Randolph 16 for Memphis. Guard Mike Conley strained his right hamstring, briefly returned and left for good with 8:48 left. Conley went down in the third quarter near midcourt dribbling when Kendrick Perkins reached in for a steal. The Memphis guard returned briefly, but Conley was limping noticeably. With the Thunder in control, Conley went to the locker room again and didnt return. Nick Calathes currently is suspended for violating the NBAs anti-drug policy, leaving Memphis with only Beno Udrih at point guard. Memphis coach Dave Joerger said Udrih will play a lot of minutes if Conley cant. Conley said he will be re-evaluated Friday and receive as much treatment as possible before tipoff Saturday. "I plan on playing," Conley said. Durant had to answer questions after the shootaround Thursday about that headline in The Oklahoman newspaper. Durant said he had no problem with the headline and that he just needed to hit shots and be more aggressive. Smiling just before tipoff, Durant did just that. The man who led the NBA scoring 32 points a game during the regular season opened by hitting five of his first seven and finished 11 of 23 from the floor. He continued to struggle outside the arc where he missed all six of his attempts. The Grizzlies had a chance to advance to their third semifinal in four years on their own floor. Yet they couldnt shoot well or match the Thunders intensity with a sloppy performance in front of a sellout crowd that tried to energize the Grizzlies. Oklahoma City outrebounded Memphis 47-36 and easily outshot them 49.3 per cent (37 of 75) to 37.3 per cent (31 of 83). "We knew sooner or later our shots would fall," Brooks said. Brooks also benched Thabo Sefolosha and started Caron Butler. "This is why you play the game to prove doubters wrong, and adversity builds character," Butler said. "This team has a strong character and a will." Memphis last led 6-4. A team that thrives off defence, the Grizzlies couldnt knock down shots even when they managed to get consecutive stops. The Grizzlies got to 42-37 with 3:08 left on a steal and fast-break layup by Conley. The Thunder finished the half with a 14-4 run for a 56-41 lead. The Grizzlies missed their first six shots to open the third quarter, finishing any hopes of a comeback. James Johnson scored 15 points off the bench for Memphis, and Allen added 13. Notes: This will be the second Game 7 between the teams in four years. Oklahoma City beat Memphis in seven in the 2011 conference semifinals. ... The Grizzlies are 4-1 with a chance to close out a series. ... Steven Adams blocked a career-high five shots off the bench for the Thunder. Cheapest Air Max 92 . He was 90. The team announced Monday that Adams had died, saying he "passed away peacefully from natural causes." The son of a prominent oil executive, Adams built his own energy fortune and founded the Houston Oilers. Cheapest Air Max TN . -- The Oakland Athletics and free agent right-hander Bartolo Colon have agreed to terms on a US$2 million, one-year contract, bolstering their depleted starting rotation. http://www.cheapestwholesalenikeshoes.com/ . Giants manager Bruce Bochy told The Associated Press of the decision before NL West-leading San Francisco opened a 10-game homestand Monday night with the first of three games against second-place Arizona. Nike Air Max Mens Sale . The appointment of Boullier continues the behind-the-scenes restructuring at McLaren, who recently brought back former team principal Ron Dennis as its new chief executive. Cheapest Air Max 2012 . The Pope greeted Klose at his general audience Wednesday and the pair had a long chat. Klose is German like the pope, although he was born in Poland. In Sundays derby, Lazio took the lead in the seventh minute after Maarten Stekelenburg brought down Klose, resulting in the Roma goalkeeper being sent off and a penalty that Hernanes converted.BROSSARD, Que. -- The tight games and nastiness between old rivals Montreal and Boston is coming to a Game 7 climax. The best-of-seven NHL Eastern Conference semifinal has the Canadiens and Bruins tied 3-3 going into a final showdown in Boston on Wednesday night. Listen to the game live on TSN Radio 690 and TSN.ca/Montreal. The Canadiens staved off elimination by using a high-tempo approach for a 4-0 victory in Game 6 on Monday night in Montreal. And while much of the attention has been on disrespectful words, gestures and the odd spear to the groin area, Canadiens veteran Daniel Briere feels his team will have to stick to fast-paced hockey for any chance to topple the leagues first-place overall team. "You cant beat the Bruins playing like the Bruins," Briere said Tuesday. "I think theyre probably the best at (physical hockey). "We have to be smarter. Well have to take punches. Well have to take slashes. Well have to get hurt at times. Thats when were most successful, when we dont get into their game." Its likely that neither side will want to risk penalties in a Game 7 that will send one team on vacation and the other to the conference final, unless the score gets out of hand for one team or the other. But Boston was abuzz with remarks made by Montreals flashy defence ace P.K. Subban after Game 6, in which the teams playoff scoring leader said the TD Garden crowd will provide plenty of energy for the Bruins and "I cant wait to take that all away from them." Subban, who has 12 points in 10 games, also said he gave no credit to the Boston crowd that boos him regularly for making him play better, adding: "I play to win. I dont care if theres nobody in the stands." Briere said Subban, who turned 25 on Tuesday, has learned to thrive on playing the villain in opposing teams rinks. "Lets face it, most of the buildings we go into hes kind of the target," said Briere. "He sticks out. "Hes flashy. He plays with an edge. Hes one of our best players, so he attracts the boos on the road. I think P.K. has become even better as the season went on at dealing with that and using it to his advantage. "Other than screaming at us, theres not much else they can do. If at the end of the night we win, theyre probably going to be very quiet walking home. That would be the ultimate reward for us." The Canadiens and Bruins are facing each other in the playoffs for a record 34th time and this will be their record ninth Game 7. Montreal has won five of them, but the Bruins took the last one on April 27, 2011, when Subban scored the tying goal but Nathan Horrton got the overtime winner in a 4-3 Boston victory.dddddddddddd Subban scored in overtime in the series opener last week in Boston, and scored on a power play in Game 5 in Boston as the Canadiens mounted a late surge before falling 4-2. The series has seen spears to the groin from both sides, including Andrei Markovs jab at Boston captain Zdeno Chara late in Game 6. In the previous game, the Bruins Shawn Thornton was fined for squirting water into Subbans visor from the bench. Boston bruiser Milan Lucic caused a stir with a display of muscle flexing, only to have Montreals Dale Weise do it back to him. "Theres a lot of that going on with their team, their players, even their fans," said Montreal forward Brandon Prust. "They can throw as much disrespect as they want. "It doesnt really bother us at all. That was just (Weise) giving a little bit back and mocking them a little bit. Its not a big deal." Prust does not expect fireworks. "If it was the regular season, Im sure it would carry over, but this is Game 7," he said. "What are we going to do? Go out there and slash them and punch them in the head, take stupid penalties? "Not at all. Well focus on winning a hockey game and not taking dumb penalties." The Canadiens stayed alive with what coach Michel Therrien called their best game of the playoffs so far. He saw Max Pacioretty, with a goal and an assist, and Thomas Vanek, with two goals, deliver the points expected of top-line players. He also got a 26-save shutout from a highly focused Carey Price. And his move to replace slow-footed Douglas Murray with skilled and quick-skating rookie Nathan Beaulieu worked to perfection as the 21-year-old was plus-2 in limited ice time. "We played a hell of a game," said Therrien. "The only thing weve got to do is reset, refocus and make sure weve got another good game (on Wednesday)." The Canadiens have not been to a conference final since 2010, when goalie Jaroslav Halak backstopped them to upsets of Washington and Pittsburgh before they fell to the Philadelphia Flyers. The Bruins hope to reach the conference final for the third time in four years. They won the Stanley Cup in 2011 and lost in the final to Chicago last spring. "Weve felt confident all series against these guys," said Montreal captain Brian Gionta. "(Monday) night was definitely a great effort, but weve had efforts like that already in this series. "The hope is to go in there and have that same effort. And hopefully, the pressures on them." 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