----- Jayson Tatum finished with 32 points, nine rebounds, and five assists as the Boston Celtics edge the Portland Trail Blazers 116-115 Tuesday night at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
Jayson Tatum scored 32 points including the game-clinching three-pointer with 8.5 seconds remaining as the Boston Celtics delivered the Portland Trail Blazers a heart-breaking 116-115 loss Tuesday night at Moda Center.
Jaylen Brown scored 24 points and Kemba Walker added 21 for Boston, winners of eight of their last 11 games.
Damian Lillard led Portland (31-23) with 28 points and 10 assists and Carmelo Anthony scored 25 points off the bench.
Jusuf Nurkic played his best game since returning from injury finishing with eight points, nine rebounds, seven assists, and three steals.
One positive for the Blazers in the loss was the return to ball movement and player movement in their offense resulting in 31 assists as they made an effort to run less pick-and-rolls.
“I don't know about the number,” Blazers Coach Terry Stotts said. “I mean, obviously, we still have some pick-and-rolls, but I think the fact we had 31 assists was very encouraging. I thought our guys did a nice job of moving and passing and screening. I really liked the way we moved -- with and without the ball.”
A Walker three-pointer put Boston up 107-99 with just over five minutes left, but Lillard's three-pointer cut the deficit to five points.
McCollum gave Portland the lead at 112-111 lead 1:01 to go, but Tatum made a pair of free throws before a step-back 3-pointer with 8.5 seconds appeared to seal it. Norman Powell hit a 3 for the Blazers with 5.4 seconds to go to close within 116-115, but Portland couldn't catch up.
Up Next- The Trail Blazers will head to San Antonio to meet the Spurs on Friday night at the AT&T Center. The game is scheduled to tip off at 5:30 PM.
Chad's Take- Nurkic played one of his best games of the season.