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. Pavel Buchnevich Jersey . MORITZ, Switzerland -- Latvia won a four-man World Cup bobsled race Sunday, while the U. Mike Richter Jersey .com) - Real Madrid claimed its 20th consecutive win across all competitions by cruising to a 4-1 victory at Almeria on Friday. http://www.authenticnyrangerspro.com/Chr...rangers-jersey/. -- Maxence Parrot of Bromont, Que. Mark Messier Jersey . The New York Rangers centre had a goal and two assists in a 4-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators ending a 13-game goal-scoring drought. Jaromir Jagr Jersey . According to TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger, the Maple Leafs have trade offers on the table for the 26-year-old, but none have been deemed acceptable by the team. DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Fourth-seeded Roger Federer ended top-seeded Novak Djokovics chance of defending his Dubai Championships title with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 semifinal win on Friday. Federer will be looking for his sixth Dubai title when he plays third-seeded Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic in Saturdays final. Berdych reached his second consecutive Dubai Championships final with a tough 7-5, 7-5 semifinal win over seventh-seeded Philiipp Kohlschreiber of Germany. Federer now leads Djokovic 17-15 in their career head-to-head meetings. He also leads Djokovic 13-12 when competing on hard courts. "He deserved to win," Djokovic said. "He played in the second part of the match better and was more aggressive and played all around the court really well." Djokovic had won their last three matches and nine of their last 12 matches. Hes twice won three consecutive matches against Federer, but never has won four in a row. "Right now Im just happy that I was able to win the match," Federer said. "I dont care so much about the head-to-heads. "But its nice to be in the finals here in Dubai again." For the first set-and-a-half, Djokovic looked as if he would have an easy time reaching the final. Djokovic established an early lead when Federer lost his serve in an error-filled second game of the first set. Serving at 5-3, Djokovic won the first set on his third set point of the game with a clean ace down the middle. Midway through the second set, it seemed as though Federer remembered that his new part-time coach Stefan Edberg, who is not in Dubai, is urging him to play more offensively. From that point on, Federer started to come into the net and volley more often, which was an effective strategy that Djokovic couldnt handle. "I think I was able to play a bit more aggressive as the match went onn," Federer said.dddddddddddd "For me it was just a matter of playing consistent, but remain aggressive. "Clearly it was close, but I think I got the right balance." Djokovic doesnt seem to be interested in learning to use the net effectively now that he has Boris Becker, who was a serve and volley type of player, as his new head coach. "Weve been working on certain details in my game, but its nothing significant that Im going to change," Djokovic said. "Im not going to play serve and volley." In the second set, Djokovic surrendered his serve in an error-riddled sixth game to put Federer in position to even the score at one set apiece. Federer broke Djokovics serve in the first and fifth games of the third set to set up the win. In the final game, Federer saved two break points when serving for the match in the final game. Berdych enters the final on a 11-match winning streak. He arrived in Dubai having won his first title in over a year at Rotterdam two weeks ago. "I think hes playing very well right now," Federer said. "This is a big match for him tomorrow (Saturday) as well. "I will try to stop him and play a good match myself." Berdych now leads Kohlschreiber 8-1 in career matches played. In the first set, Kohlschreiber broke out to a 4-2 lead after Berdych lost his serve in the opening game of the match. From 5-3 for Kohlschreiber, Berdych won the next four games to win the first set, which lasted one hour, 28 minutes. The second set stayed on serve until the very last game, when Kohlschreiber surrendered his serve at 15-40 for Berdych to return to the final. "The second final in a row with so many great players in the draw here is a great result for me," Berdych said. "Its great to be able to be hitting the ball so nice and clean." ' ' '