| |
|
NBA Playoffs -- Lillard scores 30, lift Blazers over OKC in Game 1
By Nicky Manguino PhilBoxing.com Mon, 15 Apr 2019

PORTLAND- The Portland Trail Blazers jumped to a 39-25 lead in the opening quarter and then held off the Oklahoma City Thunder the rest of the way to take Game 1 of their opening round series, 104-99, on Sunday (Manila time) at the Moda Center.
All-Star point guard Damian Lillard led the charge with 30 points, four rebounds and four assists. He converted 9-of-21 field goals, including 5-of-11 from 3-point distance. Lillard's backcourt tandem, C.J. McCollum, finished with 24 points, but he made only nine of 24 shots and showed a lot of rust after just recently coming back from a ten-game absence due to a knee injury.
"We know how it feels to win again," Lillard told reporters after the game.
In the past two postseasons, Portland has lost eight straight as they were swept by the Golden State Warriors in 2007 and by the New Orleans Pelicans last year.
Enes Kanter, who started in place of the injured Jusuf Nurkic, was a huge reason for the turnaround. Kanter, waived by the New York Knicks during February trading deadline, scored 20 points and hauled 18 rebounds. Al-Farouq Aminu contributed 10 points for Portland, which 36 of 86 field goals.
After closing the gap at 54-48 at halftime, the Thunder put the added pressure in the fourth quarter and came to within 93-92 with 2:44 left to play. But uprising ended abruptly when Lillard sank a 30-foot 3 to extend the lead back to four.
Russell Westbrook fueled much of Oklahoma's attack with a triple-double effort that netted him 26 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Fellow All-Star Paul George accounted for 24 points and 10 rebounds, but he struggled greatly from beyond the arc, missing 11 of 15 tries.
Game 2 of this best-of-7 series returns to the Moda Center on Tuesday night (Wednesday AM Manila time).
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Nicky Manguino.
Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:
Open Workout: Abdullah Mason and Albert Bell Prepare For Saturday's All-Ohio World Title Showdown , Thu, 02 Jul 2026Dela Peña stops Delos Santos, now ready for Slugfest By Lito delos Reyes, , Thu, 02 Jul 2026A Filipino Champion’s Last Fourth of July: A Visit to Oaks Ball Park By Emmanuel Rivera, RRT, , Thu, 02 Jul 2026Amazing Muay Thai WBC 2026 Festival Consolidates Its Global Success in Bangkok By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Thu, 02 Jul 2026IBA Bare Knuckle unveils star-studded fight card ahead of its first event in the USA , Thu, 02 Jul 2026Eman-Perez trilogy being set up in August By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 01 Jul 2026Macababayao to face again Latonio after 4 years in Slugfest By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 01 Jul 2026Legendary Olympic Trainer Victor Pascual to be inducted into the Republica Dominicana Hall of Fame By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Wed, 01 Jul 2026Abdullah Mason vs. Albert Bell Fight Week Events to Stream LIVE on Top Rank’s Social Media Channels , Wed, 01 Jul 2026HISTORIC NIGHT OF CELEBRATION FOR IRISH SPORT AWAITS AS UNDERCARD FOR KATIE TAYLOR VS PILI AT CROKE PARK iS CONFIRMED , Wed, 01 Jul 2026Paradero to fight Cuarto for PBF Silver title on July 25 By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 01 Jul 2026World Boxing Council Joins the Humanitarian Aid Relief for Earthquake Victims in Venezuela By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Wed, 01 Jul 2026LESTER MARTINEZ VS. LUKA PLANTIC ANNOUNCEMENT PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES , Wed, 01 Jul 2026KORONADAL SLUGFEST: I’m always ready – Roherstrey Jhon Yor By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 01 Jul 2026THE PAST WEEK IN ACTION 29 JUNE 2026: Paro UD Crocker for IBF Welter Title; Ennis Stops Zayas in 7 for WBA, WBO Welter Titles; Wins by Whittaker, Vargas and Tucker; Valenzuela KO2 De Los Santos By Eric Armit, , Tue, 30 Jun 2026Rising Featherweight Star Jaycob "The Raging Bull" Ramos Signs Exclusive Management Agreement with Boxing VIP , Tue, 30 Jun 2026Clarion to leave on July 2 for WBC Youth title By Lito delos Reyes, , Tue, 30 Jun 2026Gustavo Trujillo Stays Undefeated with Devastating Seventh-Round Knockout at Fist of Fury 11 , Tue, 30 Jun 2026World Boxing Council Unveils Special July 4th Commemorative Belt Honoring USA 250th Anniversary By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Tue, 30 Jun 202612-Year-Old Filipina Memory Prodigy Georgina Santos to Represent the Philippines in Two World Memory Championships By Marlon Bernardino, , Tue, 30 Jun 2026World championship mega-fight between Christian Mbilli and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez postponed to October , Mon, 29 Jun 2026Filipino Jonas Magpantay wins Indonesia; pockets $15,000, gains steam heading to Vietnam By Marlon Bernardino, , Mon, 29 Jun 2026Ex-kickboxer to debut in MMA Slugfest By Lito delos Reyes, , Mon, 29 Jun 2026Deaño settles to a draw By Lito delos Reyes, , Sun, 28 Jun 2026Abdyrakhmanov defeats Kadiev, Kudryashov knocks out Yousefi at IBA Bare Knuckle 5 in Moscow , Sun, 28 Jun 2026 |

|
|
|
|
|