Trail Blazers Play the Jazz to the Tune of Northwest Division Title

The Portland Trail Blazers secured the third seed and home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs by beating the Utah Jazz 102-93, earning their first Northwest Division title since 2015.

The Blazers were led by Damian Lillard with 36 points and 10 assists. The Jazz were led by Donovan Mitchell with 17 points.

Here are some quick takeaways from game 82 of the 2017-2018 season.

The Blazers looked fresh.

See, there was nothing to worry about. The Blazers looked re-energized at home coming off a long road trip in which their offense struggled. Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum looked liked they had dipped themselves in the fountain of youth that takes you back at least one month. But, they weren’t alone as the Blazers beat the Jazz to just about every lose ball and fifty-fifty rebound. Meanwhile...

The Jazz looked like a team on the second of a back-to-back at the end of the season

The Jazz looked gassed after smacking around the Golden State Warriors last night. Utah’s leading scorer, Donovan Mitchell, struggled mightily from the field while Lillard danced around him and the entire Utah team all night long. To Utah’s credit, they went on a 13-0 run in the fourth quarter that Lillard single-handily had to squash.

New Orleans Pelicans

Just forget about that lull the Blazers had in the fourth quarter and hope it doesn’t happen again for the next month or two. Now, it’s on to the playoffs against Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans. This will mark the first time these two teams have played each other in a playoff atmosphere. Here we go!

Highlights!

Beginning with Evan Turner receiving the Maurice Lucas award.

Royce O’Neale going for all the Oscars.

Box Score

Up Next

The Playoffs are here! The Trail Blazers will begin the playoffs this weekend at home against the New Orleans Pelicans. Days and times to be announced. Stay tuned to Blazer’s Edge for further analysis of this game and everything Blazers playoffs!