The Memphis Grizzlies beat the Portland Trail Blazers 124-103 on Thursday night in Portland. The NBA meeting between two unbeaten Western Conference teams stayed even for a half before the visitors took over after the break.

Portland was playing the second night of a back-to-back. The Trail Blazers had won 136-129 at the Los Angeles Lakers on Oct. 28 before returning home to face a Memphis side that had a day off after its last game.

Dead Even Through Two Quarters

Neither team could separate in the first half. The opening quarter finished 25-25, and the second was a mirror image at 33-33. Both offenses traded points throughout, and the teams went to the locker room level.

That balance did not survive the third quarter. Memphis outscored Portland 33-25 in the period to take control of the game for the first time.

Memphis Owns the Fourth

The Grizzlies kept the same pace in the final quarter and won it 33-20. Memphis scored 33 points in three of the four quarters, while Portland’s output dropped in each of the last two periods. The Trail Blazers finished at 103, well below the totals they had posted in their previous outings.

Portland had been scoring freely during its unbeaten start, with a 124-83 home win over the Phoenix Suns on Oct. 22 and a 128-120 victory at the Sacramento Kings on Oct. 24 before the win in Los Angeles. Against Memphis, that production faded after halftime.

Unbeaten Matchup Goes the Grizzlies’ Way

Both teams arrived without a loss. Portland entered at 3-0, second in the Western Conference and first in the Northwest Division. Memphis came in at 4-0, third in the West and second in the Southwest Division.

The win extends a strong run for the Grizzlies, who had won their previous five games: 116-98 at home against the Charlotte Hornets, 123-103 at home against the Utah Jazz, 111-108 at the Golden State Warriors, 123-112 at Sacramento and 110-105 at Utah. Several of those came in close finishes, which made Thursday’s comfortable second-half margin stand out.

For Portland, the defeat ends a three-game winning streak to open the season.

The schedule offers little rest for either side. The Trail Blazers go back on the road on Saturday, Oct. 31, to face the Utah Jazz. Memphis returns home to host the Sacramento Kings on Sunday, Nov. 1.