Lillard Wills Blazers To Game 5 Blowout WinRockets 94 @ Trail Blazers 110
Jeremy Lin had one of his best games in a Rocket uniform, but Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers would not be denied a game 5 win. Lillard and Aldridge had 37 and 16 points respectively, but both players flirted with triple doubles. The game was close all throughout the first half, with Lin and Lillard in an intense scoring duel.
It wasn't until the fourth period that Portland would blow the game open. Ramon Sessions and Wes Matthews hit timely threes to get the crowd going, and the Blazers went on a decisive 17-6 run. Chalupas were never in doubt as the Blazers cruised to a 110-94 victory. They will have a chance to close things out in Houston. According to Kevin McHale though, "there's no f***ing chance".
Paul Millsap had 18 points and 8 rebounds in the loss but went down late with back spasms and is expected to come off the bench in game 6.
HOU 27 20 25 22 | 94 - Lin: 25/3/5; Harden: 20/3/10; Millsap: 18/8/2
POR 24 27 25 34 | 110 - Lillard: 37/7/9, 14-22 FG; Aldridge: 16/9/8; Matthews: 14/3/3
Around the NBAThunder 110, Jazz 99 [OKC wins 4-1]
Warriors 110, Nuggets 100 [DEN leads 3-2]
Hornets 111, Spurs 100 [NO leads 3-2]
Heat 108, Wizards 84 [MIA leads 3-2]
Raptors 97, 76ers 89 [TOR wins 4-1]
Bulls 105, Pacers 98 [CHI wins 4-1]
Pistons 118, Celtics 114 [DET wins 4-1]
COMING SOON:
[2] Pistons vs. [6] Bulls
Rockets Dominate Third Quarter To Force Game 7Trail Blazers 94 @ Rockets 105
Damian Lillard scored a team-high 26 points and the Rockets were held to 40 points in the first half. Those were the positives for the Blazers, who were dominated by James Harden, Thomas Robinson and the rest of the Rockets. After a tightly contested first half owned by Damian Lillard, the Rockets responded in a big way in the third quarter. Feeding off a bevy of Blazer turnovers, Houston nearly matched their first half total in the period alone.
Entering the fourth quarter double digits, Portland tried to recover by bombing away from distance. That only made things worse as they found themselves down by as much as 17. Down 15 with three minutes to go, many were shuffling out. Damian Lillard wasn't ready to throw in the towel as he led the team on a 15-3 run to put Portland within three. James Harden scored a three-point play out of a timeout and a quick turnover at the other end finally allowed the Rockets faithful to breathe.
Damian Lillard impressed with 26 points and 7 assists, but was bested by Rockets star James Harden, who had 30 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds himself. The X-Factor however was Thomas Robinson, who put up a career high 26 points in what he called "the best game I've ever played". The Rockets force a game 7 in Portland. The winner of tomorrow night's game 7 between New Orleans and San Antonio will certainly be watching that one closely.
POR 21 22 24 27 | 94 - Lillard: 26/3/7; Aldridge: 16/7/4 TO's; M. Leonard: 2/10/2 blks
HOU 22 18 38 27 | 105 - Harden: 30/6/7; T. Robinson: 26/5/4 stls, 10-16 FG; Lin: 16/3/5, 5-7 FG
Around The NBASpurs 94, Hornets 87 [Series tied 3-3]
Warriors 134, Nuggets 109 [Series tied 3-3]
Wizards 106, Heat 96 [Series tied 3-3]