Lillard scores 40 to lead Blazers to crucial Game 3 win over Warriors
The Portland Trail Blazers dismissed any notion Saturday night that they were simply content to reach the second round of the NBA playoffs, only to be chewed up and spit out by the Golden State Warriors.
They scavenged for loose balls, Damian Lillard rained threes and the Blazers made this second-round mismatch a competitive series once again, taking Game 3 120-108.
They can even the series on Monday at home for Game 4.
In what amounted to a must-win situation, especially with Steph Curry still sidelined from his MCL sprain, the Blazers showed the kind of depth and shooting the Warriors are known for. Lillard led his team with 40 points on 14-of-27 shooting, including several audacious three-pointers that normally only Curry would try. He seemed to gain confidence as the fourth quarter wore on, burying back-to-back three-pointers at one point to finish 8-of-13 from beyond the arc. As a team, the Blazers shot 17-for-30 from three-point range.
In three games against the Warriors in Portland this season, Lillard has averaged 43.6 points. Saturday's performance came with Warriors guard Klay Thompson draped all over him. And if his shot selection didn't allude to a never-ending supply of confidence, then his postgame comments to ESPN certainly did.
"I'm a confident person, all around, even when I step away from the game," Lillard said. "Our team, I think we match up well with these guys. We can go small, we can score the ball. But it's more of a mental thing. Staying locked in for the whole game because this team can run off on you with those three-pointers."
It wasn't just Lillard, though. He got substantial help from swingman Al-Farouq Aminu, who finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds on 8-of-9 shooting. One corner three-pointer in front of the Warriors' bench seemed to elicit a turnaround stare at none other than Curry. Later cameras caught Curry shaking his head after another Aminu bucket.
"It's been the story of our team this year, having so many guys step up, and tonight he was huge for us," Lillard said.
Even though Draymond Green and Thompson combined for 72 points, only one other Warrior (Leandro Barbosa) hit double-figures. Green and Thompson were 13-of-21 from three-point range to keep it relatively close, but there were indications all over that Game 3 would fall to the Blazers.
If it wasn’t the perplexing second-quarter foul from Barbosa on a 30-foot three-point attempt with the shot clock expiring, then it was the lane-crashing slam from Aminu that left Green stationary on the perimeter. Or the third-quarter sequence where Thompson expertly defended Lillard, only for his block to lead to a wide-open three-pointer from Allen Crabbe atop the arc.
How does a team shoot 38% from the field in the first half and still build a 12-point halftime lead as Portland did? Well, they shot 57% on three-pointers (8-of-14) in the first two quarters.
Lillard paced the Blazers with 25 points and was 5-of-7 from three-point range in the first half. He buried several with seemingly no space to elevate, and the variety of threes he knocked down included the pull-up, catch-and-shoot and heat-check variety.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Curry was progressing. He might be the only one in this series more gifted than Lillard.
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