----- Larry Nance Jr. sparked the Trail Blazers with 16 points and nine rebounds and Jusuf Nurkic scored 18 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as the Portland Trail Blazers overcame a 15-point halftime deficit to defeat the Chicago Bulls 112-107 Wednesday night at Moda Center.
For the second-straight game, the Portland Trail Blazers did not allow a slow start to doom them.
Larry Nance Jr. finished the game with 16 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and three steals, and Jusuf Nurkic recorded a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds as the Portland Trail Blazers overcame a 15-point halftime deficit to defeat the Chicago Bulls 112-107 Wednesday night at Moda Center.
The Trail Blazers started the night slow on both ends of the floor allowing the Chicago Bulls to race to an 18-point lead. The Blazers lacked energy in the first half, struggled defensively, and Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum shot a combined 1-for-10 in the first 24 minutes.
Nance Jr. and Norman Powell led a ferocious comeback in the third quarter as they combined for 16 points in the period and raised the intensity for the Blazers on the defensive end. The result was a 33-22 edge in the quarter cutting the deficit to four points entering the final quarter.
The Blazers newfound energy powered a 23-9 run in the fourth quarter allowing the Blazers to take control of the game with 3:39 to play.
Zach Lavine would get the lead back for Chicago for a moment at 107-106 with 1:20 to play, but the Blazers would go on to score the final six points of the game to secure the victory.
Lavine led Chicago (10-5) with a game-high 30 points, DeMar DeRozan finished with 22 points and five assists, and Alex Caruso added 12 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists.
Lillard led Portland (8-8) with 22 points on just 6-of-18 shooing while McCollum struggled with just nine points on 4-of-14 shooting.
Up Next- The Trail Blazers will host the Philadelphia 76ers Saturday night at Moda Center. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7:00 PM.
Chad's Take- I need more Larry Nance Jr. in my life.