----- CJ McCollum scored 30 points and dished out five assists as the Portland Trail Blazers won their third-straight game with a 112-111 victory over the Toronto Raptors Monday night at Moda Center.
The CJ McCollum Show!
CJ McCollum continued his terrific start to the NBA season Monday night scoring 30 points including the go ahead bucket with 9.9 seconds remaining as the Portland Trail Blazers win their third-straight game 112-111 over the Toronto Raptors at Moda Center.
Portland (6-4) overcame a 17-point deficit to get the win.
McCollum connected on 10 of his 19 shots including 5-of-11 from beyond-the-arc and he dished out five assists and pulled down six rebounds.
Carmelo Anthony made just one of his first seven shots, but he responded in the fourth quarter scoring 13 of his 20 points including 10 of the Blazers 15 points down the stretch. Anthony made 4-of-9 from three-point range.
Jusuf Nurkic left the game in the first half with a left quadriceps contusion and did not return. His replacement, Enes Kanter, scored 14 points and pull down six rebounds on 7-of-8 shooting in just 16 minutes.
Pascal Siakam gave the Raptors a 111-110 lead with 54 seconds left on a cutting layup. After an empty Blazers possession, Fred VanVleet missed a jumper on the other end for Toronto before McCollum put Portland ahead.
The Raptors got one last chance to win the game with just under 10 seconds to play, but Siakam missed a shot in the paint with Robert Covington draped all over him.
“He was guarding Siakam, and you know I would be remiss right now if I didn't say what an excellent job Robert did on Siakam in the second half,” Portland Coach Terry Stotts said. “You know, Siakam came out with 10 in the first quarter and ‘RoCo’ got two quick fouls. But I thought the defensive job he did on him, particularly in the fourth quarter, but in general, for the second half was a key to the win.”
Siakam led Toronto (2-8) with the first triple-double of his career 22 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists.
Up Next- The Trail Blazers travel to Sacramento to meet the Kings on Wednesday night. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7:00 PM.
Chad's Take- This is the best stretch of McCollum's career. He is playing All-Star basketball.