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Houston Rockets end Portland Trail Blazers 13-game win streak, 115-111

By Nate Mann

PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 20: Damian Lillard
PORTLAND, OR - MARCH 20: Damian Lillard /
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After a back and forth game, the Houston Rockets managed to snap the Portland Trail Blazers’ 13-game winning streak with a 115-111 victory.

Unexpected losses by the Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder earlier in the night meant the Blazers and Rockets had the league’s two longest win streaks just in time to face off. Houston came into the Moda Center with the NBA’s best record of 56-14. Portland, on the other hand, returned from Los Angeles riding a 13-game winning streak and breathing room at third place in the West.

Game Story

As expected, the first quarter became a duel between Al-Farouq Aminu and James Harden.

While Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum combined for six points, Aminu led the way with 16 and had Portland leading 31-27 after one. A side note from the first 12 minutes: Jusuf Nurkic played outstanding defense down low, picking up two early blocks.

The classic Rockets showed up to begin the second, hitting three straight three-pointers. A cross-quarter 11-0 run had the bad guys leading by 5, until the Blazers came roaring back with an 8-0 run of its own.

Mike D’Antoni quickly deployed his counter measure – Harden re-entered the game and scored five straight. Neither team could gain control through the final six minutes of the quarter and by half, the game was locked at 55.

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Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum remained cold out of the break. Even with Harden continuing his tear, the three other Blazers starters kept the deficit slim. An eventual 10-1 Portland run built the lead up to 6, but like every lead in this game, it dissipated. By the end of three, the Blazers were in front, 87-86.

With Harden on the bench, Chris Paul and Eric Gordon connected on three straight three-pointers to push Houston back ahead. The Jusuf Nurkic spin move closed the deficit single-handedly, though.

Just as James Harden’s clutch shooting seemed to put the game out of reach, Portland pulled together a 7-0 run to come within two points, 28 seconds on the clock. Solid defense for an entire shot clock nearly paid off as CP3 missed a runner, but no one corralled the rebound and the Rockets regained possession.

Two free throws from Paul made the deficit four and the 13-game win streak officially came to a close.

Player of the Game

Jusuf Nurkic

In a game in which both Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum failed to perform to their normal level, Jusuf Nurkic became the primary man to fill the void.

Time and time again, he found himself in the post backing down a much smaller Rockets player. Using his patented spin move, Nurkic managed to score 21 points on 9/10 shooting. He also made it to the foul line several times where he converted 3/6 free throws.

On the other end, the Bosnian Beast defended his best all season. After swatting two shots in the first quarter alone, he finished with 2 steals and 4 blocks. One of those four came with under a minute left as well – he denied a floater from Harden that led to Lillard finishing a fastbreak layup.

Play of the Game

Dame and CJ scored 6 points in the first quarter. Who else but Aminu to duel with Harden? Aminu connected on four three-pointers for 16 points in the first quarter alone. He tied a career-high six threes on the night.

5 Stats from the Game

  • Al-Farouq Aminu scored 16 first quarter points. He’s scored over 16 points in 6 of 57 games played this season.
  • Portland outscored Houston 48-38 in points in the paint.
  • Damian Lillard failed to make a three-pointer tonight, snapping his 52-game streak of hitting at least one.
  • CJ McCollum scored his second lowest point total tonight with 8 points in 34 minutes.
  • The Blazers made 11/28 three-pointers while the Rockets made 19/36.

Next: Terry Stotts in the Coach of the Year discussion

This loss snaps a mighty 13-game winning streak for the Blazers. Next opponent is the depleted Boston Celtics at the Moda Center – regaining the momentum from the win streak is essential against Boston and for the remainder of the season.