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St. Patrick’s Day celebration: Blazers beat Pistons, snag 12th straight victory

By Shawn P. O’Connor

PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 17: CJ McCollum
PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 17: CJ McCollum /
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The Blazers (43-26) beat the Pistons 100-87 Saturday at the Moda Center to earn their 12th win in a row.

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The Portland Trail Blazers went for their 12th win in a row Saturday, hoping to build some breathing room in the crowded Western Conference.

With a loaded schedule on the horizon, a game at the Moda Center against the slumping Pistons remained a must-win.

Here’s how the action played out on St. Patrick’s Day.

First Half

After a sloppy first couple minutes, both teams found their form.

The quarter got off to a bad start, with Jusuf Nurkic picking up two quick fouls and a spot on the bench.

That’s where the bad start would end, however, as Moe Harkless delivered this gem of a jam:

After declaring that the dunk of the night in my notes, I quickly had to reconsider when Meyers Leonard threw this down:

Blazer shots were falling early, as the Blazers started the game 10-for-17 from the floor. The quarter was punctuated by this beautiful shot by Al-Farouq Aminu:

After one, the Blazers led 31-20.

The second quarter featured Nurkic elbow jumpers …

… and Damian Lillard dominating the boards …

… and tricky moves by CJ McCollum.

The Blazers took a 60-45 lead into halftime.

Second Half

After the break, both teams’ defenses showed up to play, with each side only giving up eight points in the first five minutes of the third. Despite chilly shooting and solid defense on both sides, Portland never led by less than 12 and took an 80-63 advantage into the final period.

Pat Connaughton, the Irishman on St. Patrick’s Day, had the highlight of the quarter with this alley-oop.

An 11-4 run by Detroit to start the fourth cut the Blazers lead to 10 points, prompting head coach Terry Stotts to put Lillard back in the game. The presence of the Blazers All-Star didn’t stretch the lead, however, as both teams traded baskets until a frustrated Stotts called timeout with 4:22 remaining in the game and his team up by just nine points.

A 7-0 Detroit run cut the Blazers lead to 91-84, and Stotts called another timeout. Aminu then hit a huge three to push the lead to double digits once again.

The Blazers would go on to ice the game with a 9-3 run to win their 12th straight.

Lillard led the way with 24 points, seven rebounds, eight assists and three blocks. All five Portland starters scored in double digits.

Next: Where does the Blazers’ winning streak rank in team history?

Up Next: Sunday in Los Angeles to take on the Clippers.

Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. PDT.

Three Takeaways:

  1. The Trail Blazers have won 18 of their last 19 games at the Moda Center.
  2. Chief finished with a double-double: 10 points and 12 rebounds.

3. Stotts ties McMillan.