Playing in a packed and raucous Moda Center for the team’s first home playoff game in five long, hard years, the Portland Trail Blazers lost to a San Antonio Spurs team missing its superstar Victor Wembanyama on Friday evening. 120-108 was the final score in a gritty, physical battle of wills.
Players of Note
Dylan Harper was the Spurs’ most impactful player. He took over the game after a decisive exchange at the end of the third quarter when Scoot Henderson knifed through the lane and soared for a twisting layup
over Harper. Henderson let him know about it, demonstratively flexing and talking smack. The Blazers young guard was given a technical, and Harper began breathing fire, going straight at Henderson and leading a Spurs charge that would soon break the Blazers’ back. Harper scored a team-high 27 on 9-12 shooting with 10 rebounds.
Stephon Castle, last year’s rookie of the year, fears no Blazers. He shot 55.6% from the floor and 75% from three to finish with 33 points in 34 minutes. Castle made it look like light work, repeatedly driving right into the teeth of a swarming Blazers defense for decisive buckets.
Jrue Holiday paced all Blazers. In his seventeenth season, the two-time NBA Champion was a heady presence with 29 points. He was in the right place at the right time all night long, mixing steady leadership with cutthroat and momentum swinging plays. In the end, it wasn’t enough.
Scoot Henderson continued the sterling play he showed in the first two games of the series. In the first half, Henderson demonstrated uncommon poise, cooly draining four of six three point attempts to chip in 14 points. As the game wore on, Henderson’s competitive fire and his youth were both on full display. His technical foul at the end of the third seemed to breathe fire into San Antonio.
Robert Williams III entered the game two and a half minutes into the first quarter after Donovan Clingan picked up two quick fouls. On the heels of the healthiest season he has put together in years, Williams made an immediate contribution, savagely dunking two Avdija lobs and altering shots on the defensive end of the floor. He continued his run of excellent play in the series, finishing with 11 points.
Neither Portland big man could keep San Antonio backup center, Luke Kornet, in check. Filling in for Wembanyama, Kornet’s crafty veteran presence was instrumental to the Spurs’ victory. He scored 14 points and collected 10 rebounds.
What We Noticed
It was a game of runs. The Blazers opened the game playing at a furious pace, locking down the defensive end of the floor and getting up eleven more shot attempts than the Spurs in a frenetic first quarter. The Spurs responded with a seven-point run to start the second quarter before the Blazers ripped off a 23-7 spurt of their own.
The tide began to turn in the Blazers’ favor at the end of the first half. On a night when he was passed over for the league’s most improved player award, Avdija struggled early. He took out his frustrations on Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox who collected four three fouls in the first half.
In a miscarriage of justice, near the end of the second quarter, Fox drove the lane and elevated, driving his elbow into Avdija’s mouth. Avdija came up missing half a tooth, and Fox was whistled for his fourth foul. The San Antonio guard complained vociferously enough that he earned a technical foul. The Spurs challenged the call and somehow referees reversed the call on the floor.
Though he shot poorly all night, Avdjia came out gunning to start the second half. Playing with an energy just this side of insane, the snaggle-toothed guard doubled down on his unique blend of physical defense and punishing drives, attempting to wrest the game from San Antonio’s grip.
But the Spurs would not be bullied. Though Portland built a third quarter lead, San Antonio won the strategy game. Spurs coach Mitch Johnson inserted a small lineup helmed by Castle, Fox and Harper. It showed a zone defense and waged a furious comeback. The change in tack was enough to beat Portland at its own game. San Antonio sped up the game and blew it open. The Blazers could not recover.
Up Next
The Blazers will host Game 4 in Portland Sunday at 12:30PM, Pacific. Teams that win Game 3 of a 1-1 best-of-seven series go on to win the series 73.3% of the time.
