6.) Blazers and Thunder Battle to the Wire
Both wins against the Thunder in March weren’t an easy task.
MVP candidate Russell Westbrook gave one his best efforts of the season: 45 points, seven rebounds and four assists. His 45 points included a perfect 15-15 from the line.
Bench big men Enes Kanter and Taj Gibson backed up their star with 18 and 15 points, respectively.
Behind Westbrook, the Thunder never went away. They took the lead 75-74 with just over four minutes left in the third. Their lead ballooned to 101-94 midway through the fourth.
But Portland wasn’t ready to let this one slip away.
Nurkić went on a personal five-point run to cut it down to 101-99. Then, with momentum on their side, Nurk dropped in a bucket to finally take the lead, 103-101.
To close it out, Lillard hit a three right after Nurk’s bucket, and along with McCollum, went perfect at the line to win 114-109.
Dame had 33 points—not matching Westbrook—but he had the advantage of a complete team behind him. McCollum added 18 points; Nurkić had 18 points and 12 rebounds; and Al-Farouq Aminu made timely buckets, en route to 14 points.
The Thunder and Blazers weren’t done yet with dramatic finishes, though.