"Kevin Durant was the closer Friday night.

But James Harden was the setup man.

The combination proved lethal for Memphis.

Thunder 101, Grizzlies 94.

No doubt the basketball world will be buzzing about Durant's play down the stretch. And it should be. The superstar played up to his billing, scoring the Thunder's last 10 points and sticking one dagger after another into the Grizzlies.

But frankly, if not for Harden, Durant would've never had a shot to play hero.

The Thunder was sunk without The Beard. On a night when the Grizzlies outplayed and outhustled the Thunder through three quarters, Harden changed the entire vibe of the game in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter.

"We knew we had to pick it up," Harden said. "We didn't play well ... so we had to turn our intensity up."

The Thunder had a couple decent stretches during the third quarter, but the Grizzlies answered both runs. Memphis took an eight-point lead and a truckload of momentum into the fourth quarter.

"They had everything going for them," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "They were making shots. They were getting to the free-throw line.""