Recap: Blazers Beat OKC 114-94, Lead Series 2-0

You can only contain the duo of Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum for so long.

Lillard had 29 points, McCollum had 33, and the Portland Trail Blazers used a strong third quarter to blow the Oklahoma City Thunder out of the Rose City, 114-94.

Here are tonight’s takeaways:

• Second half, two game lead: The teams went into halftime tied at 54, with Oklahoma City holding an edge in momentum. The Blazers reversed that in the third quarter, outscoring the Thunder 37-21. McCollum had nine in the quarter, Seth Curry hit back-to-back threes, and Lillard made Blazer nemesis Raymond Felton look bad as he beat the buzzer.
• Standing ovation for Meyers Leonard: With fouls piling up on both sides, Meyers Leonard was pressed into action. He responded with some of the best man-to-man defense of his career, and some timely rebounding to give the Blazers the edge they needed.
• Foster’s Home for Imaginary Fouls: The referees and lead referee Scott Foster laid on the whistle early and never let up. The teams were called for 29 fouls in the first half, and 52 overall, not including technical fouls on Zach Collins and Markieff Morris. The pace of the game changed drastically with Enes Kanter, Al-Farouq Aminu, Russell Westbrook, and Terrance Ferguson all in foul trouble early.
• George shouldering the load: Despite a shoulder injury, Paul George led the way for the Thunder, scoring 27 points on 11-of-20 shooting.
• Three point line favors Portland: The Blazers shot 13-of-32 from three. The Thunder shot 5-of-28, and dropped to 10-of-61 for the series.

WHAT’S NEXT

Portland plays game three in Oklahoma City on Friday.

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