Blazers Ground Rockets, Move Closer To Memphis

----- Jusuf Nurkic scored 18 points and pulled down 19 rebounds and CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard combined for 41 points as the Portland Trail Blazers down the Houston Rockets 110-102 Tuesday night inside the bubble in Orlando.

Houston, we have a problem!

The Portland Trail Blazers used a hot start and some solid second half defense to top the Houston Rockets 110-102 Tuesday night in Orlando. The win pulls the Blazers to within 1.5 games of the 8th place Memphis Grizzlies in the Western Conference.

The Rockets cut the Blazers lead to 103-102 with 2:14 to play, but a free throw from Damian Lillard and a three-pointer from Carmelo Anthony with 54.6 seconds remaining sealed the victory for Portland.

The Trail Blazers had plenty of balance in the win. Lillard led Portland with 21 points, CJ McCollum added 20, and Jusuf Nurkic took advantage of his size by recording a double-double finishing with 18 points and 19 rebounds.

Gary Trent Jr. continued his sensational play scoring 16 points off the bench on 4-of-9 shooting from three-point range.

The game featured a contrast in style between the Rockets small-ball lineup and the Trail Blazers size with Nurkic, Zach Collins, and Hassan Whiteside. The Blazers made the Rockets pay for playing their small lineup by dominating the glass and the paint. Portland had a 49-34 edge in rebounding, controlling the paint with their size and length.

Lillard said they went into the game challenging their big men to impose their will on the Rockets.

“We wanted them to adjust to us instead of us coming out and switching up everything we do. Since we’ve been here, we’ve been challenging our bigs to be ready to step up and switch and chase guys on the perimeter and also protect the paint.

“And our bigs have done a great job. Nurk, Hassan, Zach -- they’ve all done a great job. And tonight was no different on the defensive end. They were having to close out to guys and (the Rockets) made some threes but we said we’re going to make them pay on the glass and beat guys inside to try to take advantage of that and we’re going to see who gets the better of who at playing their game.

“And I believe it showed we were able to win that battle.”

James Harden led the Rockets with 23 points and nine assists to lead the Rockets and Jeff Green scored a season-high 22 points. Harden was limited by foul trouble. He spent the final five-minutes of the third quarter on the bench after picking up his fifth foul on a three-point play by Lillard.

Up Next- The Trail Blazers meet the Denver Nuggets on Thursday evening. The game is scheduled to tip off at 5:00 PM.

Chad's Take- Gary Trent Jr. is a cold piece.


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