After a tough outing Friday against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Portland Trail Blazers were looking for their frustrations on the Oklahoma City Thunder on the second night of a rugby player. Oklahoma City got most of their starting lineup in the Moda Center. The Blazers had short patience. The result was a decisive blow. Portland jumped on the Thunder early and extended their lead through the game, finishing with a final margin of 133-85 that became a balm for fresh wounds.
Eight Blazers players, including five from the bench, scored double figures in this game, led by CJ McCollum with 20. Portland shot 50% off the field while keeping the Thunder to 35.3% overall. , 23.5% from the arc.
First term
The Blazers did not start in their best form. Their transgression showed cracks. Jusuf Nurkic was a bit slow; Norman Powell and Damian Lillard missed tries. But hitting even a few long balls was enough to push them in front of a completely disrupted Thunder team. Oklahoma City tried to carry out their offense. In the rare cases, their passions found targets, they passed easily. This rarely happened. Turnover and broken plays were the norm. One could say that Portland’s defense was good, but it would be just as accurate to say that Thunder’s lack of firepower and coordination made everything that Portland looked like look better. When the Blazers’ offense heated up in the middle of the period, the squash was underway. The Thunder scored just 7 field goals in the period against 13 for Portland. The Blazers took a 35-19 lead after one.
Second term
Oklahoma City started firing at the start of the second period. They could barely miss, and kicked right at the edge. It provided modest, but somewhat convincing, evidence that their misery was self-inflicted and not because of Portland’s defensive prowess. On the other hand, Powell converted a few layups. But modest domestic transgression was not enough to thwart OKC. With a free kick, the Thunder cut the lead from 21 to 11 before the halfway point of the period. Carmelo Anthony stopped OKC’s run with a couple of three-pointers saving his team. It provided enough bridge to get the Blazers back to their starting unit. Despite Lillard’s struggling problems, Powell, CJ McCollum and the company still put enough points on the board to compensate earlier in the quarter. Friendly three-point barriers cover a multitude of evils. The Blazers led 65-46.
Third term
Powell warmed up again to start the third period, pushing Portland up 20 points. With such a big lead, the Blazers play for free and easily. Jusuf Nurkic ran on both sides with surrender. Lillard and McCollum shot where and when they wanted. This led to a 16-1 run that left the lead at 30. Around 8 a.m., the Thunder requested a time-out to assess the meaning of their lives. In the next play in Portland, Lillard converted an easy setup, which caused OKC to call another quick time-out to bolster their plans. After the ensuing incoming, Powell stole the ball and converted another lineup. At some point, this match ceased to be fair. (Hint: That might have been the point when the lead came in at 40.) At the end of three, Portland led 104-59.
Fourth term
The fourth quarter changed little to the character of the game. The reserves played the whole frame. Harry Giles III hit a few tries. Anfernee Simons and CJ Elleby hit the ball inside. Oklahoma City also passed, but Portland maintained the biggest lead between 40-45 and increased the final margin to 48 when the game came to an end.
Stay up to date with the extensive summary with detailed analysis of the game!
Goal scorer
The Blazers travel to Los Angeles on Tuesday night at 7:00 to face the Clippers.