Hassan Whiteside had four points for the Trail Blazers late in the third, however Austin Rivers capped the quarter with a 3-pointer to get Houston within 86-80 to begin the fourth.
TIP-INS
Rockets: G Eric Gordon remains out with a sprained left ankle. … Russell Westbrook made simply 5 of 12 totally free tosses and completed with 15 points and nine assists to snap a streak of 36 straight games with a minimum of 20 points. … Green made 5 3-pointers.
Path Blazers: Trent had 16 points and made 4 3s. … Jusuf Nurkic scored 18 points and had 19 rebounds.
UP NEXT
Rockets: Play the Lakers on Thursday night.
Path Blazers: Play Denver on Thursday.
” Earlier in his career, the ball would have been in his hands to begin with,” Stotts said. He loves the video game. He likes the sociability, he enjoys being in the NBA.”
… Russell Westbrook made just 5 of 12 complimentary tosses and finished with 15 points and 9 assists to snap a streak of 36 straight games with at least 20 points. … Green made 5 3-pointers.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.– Damian Lillard scored 21 points and Carmelo Anthony hit a huge 3-pointer late to assist the Portland Trail Blazers to a 110-102 success over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night.
The Blazers led by one prior to Lillard made one of 2 complimentary tosses. Anthonys 3 then extended the result in 107-102 when less than a minute to go.
Lillard raved about the contributions of Anthony, who found a house with the Trail Blazers after investing several months without a team last year following a brief stint with the Rockets.
” I believe its more frustrating that individuals are surprised by it,” Lillard stated. “Hes a Hall of Famer … hes a fantastic colleague whichs what we anticipate from him.”
Coach Terry Stotts likes how Anthony has evolved to help his team.
” Earlier in his career, the ball would have been in his hands to begin with,” Stotts said. “He has assimilated to his role and this group. He loves the game. He enjoys the camaraderie, he loves being in the NBA.”
Lillard added two complimentary throws and Anthony, who had 15 points and 11 rebounds, made one in the last minute to protect the success for Portland, which is fighting for a playoff area.
” We understand whats on the line and we understand what we got to do to give ourselves a chance in the postseason,” Lillard stated. “And thats what were doing.”
James Harden led Houston with 23 points and 9 helps on a night he was slowed by nasty problem.
” I could not be as aggressive as I desired to remaining in foul trouble,” he said. “But we had a lot of open shots that if we make those its a various ballgame.”
Jeff Green added a season-high 22 points as the Rockets lost for the very first time in the bubble after winning their first two video games.
The Blazers were up by 6 midway through the last quarter after CJ McCollum and Lillard made consecutive baskets. Green scored all Houstons points in a 7-1 spurt that tied it at 98 a minute later on.
McCollum finished with 20 points as the Blazers pulled within 1 1/2 games of eighth-place Memphis.
” Our most significant problem with the entire game is first of all we didnt bring out a great deal of energy, and our defense was quite slow to begin,” Houston coach Mike DAntoni stated.
When Gary Trent Jr. made a 3-pointer to put Portland up 103-100, the video game was connected once again later in the fourth. A driving layup by Harden cut the cause one with about 2 minutes to go.
Danuel House made a 3-pointer to get the Rockets within 2 midway through the 3rd quarter. Lillard then scored all of Portlands points in a 9-3 run that pushed the cause 82-74 with about 3 1/2 minutes left in the third.
Lillard had a three-point play and then sank 3s on consecutive ownerships to permit the Trail Blazers to construct the lead. Harden invested the last five minutes of the third quarter on the bench after selecting up his fifth nasty on the three-point play by Lillard.
