Westbrook shines, but Blazers have final say

Published 12:00 am Saturday, February 28, 2015

“Never say die” has cliché written all over it, but it is apropos when mentioned in the same breath with the Trail Blazers this season.

Trailing by 15 points in the third quarter and by 11 with 8 1/2 minutes to go, Portland climbed the rope and then cinched the noose in a 115-112 thriller over Oklahoma City Friday night at Moda Center.

The Blazers (38-19) are 11-11 this season in games in which they have trailed after three quarters — 9-2 at home. They have won 14 games when trailing by 10 or more points. Those are rare numbers in the NBA.

“We never believe we’re out of it,” said power forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who collected 29 points and 16 rebounds. “We understand if we turn up our defense and play at a level that we’re capable of, anything is possible.”

The Blazers did play better defense down the stretch, but they also shot well enough to score 37 points and go 14 for 18 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, all but sending the Northwest Division championship trophy in for engraving. Portland leads runner-up Oklahoma City (32-27) by seven games with 25 games left on the Blazers’ regular-season schedule.

“It was an important win for how we managed to stick with it, to fight through some adversity,” Portland coach Terry Stotts said. “We hadn’t played our best, but we found a way.”

The victory also clinched the season series with Oklahoma City for Portland, which is 3-0 against the Thunder this season.

“We knew it was a big game, especially for them,” Portland forward Nicolas Batum said. “They knew it, too. We won the series, and it was a division game. We want to win the division.”

The Blazers prevailed despite the studly performance of OKC point guard Russell Westbrook, who put up 40 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists in a losing cause. Westbrook notched his NBA-leading fifth triple-double of the season and his second in two nights, after going for 39 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists in a 117-113 overtime loss at Phoenix.

The Thunder were without star small forward Kevin Durant and centers Steven Adams and Enes Kanter due to injuries. But they had Westbrook, who had a triple-double locked up (27 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists) after three quarters.

“He has been incredible for the last month,” said Portland point guard Damian Lillard, who had a big game himself with 29 points and five assists. “Seems like he has a triple-double and is scoring over 35 every game now. He is pretty much carrying their team. I have a lot of respect for what he does for their team and what he brings every night.”

But Westbrook, who shot 7 for 11 in the first half, was only 7 for 21 in the second half. He missed a driving layup that would have tied the score with 11 seconds remaining, then missed the first of three free throws with the Thunder trailing 113-110 and 2.5 ticks left. That miss bailed out Portland’s Wesley Matthews, who intentionally fouled Westbrook but was trying to do it before he was in the act of shooting.

“I’m still a proponent, but you have to do it at the right time,” Stotts said with a smile. “If we had fouled in the backcourt, which I thought we should have … but for all the second-guessers, things can go wrong when you foul.”

The Thunder rumbled to a 59-47 halftime lead, then jacked the margin to 69-54 early in the third quarter. The Blazers still trailed 97-86 with 8 1/2 minutes left, but a 17-6 run — fueled by Aldridge, Lillard and reserve guard Arron Afflalo — tied the count at 103-103 with 4:33 left.

Afflalo’s 3-pointer from the corner gave Portland a 106-103 lead with 3:50 to go, but Westbrook’s three-point play tied it at 106-106 with 3:19 remaining.

Aldridge’s left-handed jump hook pushed the Blazers back in front 108-106 with 2:39 left, but Westbrook’s rebound bucket tied it again at 108-108 with 2:15 to go.

Aldridge sank a turnaround 18-footer for a 110-108 Portland advantage, but Westbrook evened the count at 110-110 on a pair of gift shots at the 1:48 mark.

Aldridge gave the Blazers the lead back at 111-110 with one of two at the line with 44.1 seconds to play.

After a Lillard miss on a driving layup, the Thunder rebounded and called timeout with 11.1 seconds to go. They inbounded to Westbrook, who missed a driving layup that was rebounded by Afflalo, who was fouled with 6.3 seconds remaining. He made both free throws for a 113-110 lead.

With no timeouts remaining, Westbrook took the inbound pass and was fouled in the act of shooting a 3-pointer by Matthews with 2.3 seconds to go. But Westbrook missed the first of three foul shots. He made the next two to cut the margin to 113-112. Lillard made a pair at the line with 1.4 ticks left to make it 115-112. The Thunder were unable to get off a final shot.

“We grinded it out,” said Aldridge, who earned his 29th double-double of the season. “Guys stuck with it, guys played hard, and our defense got a whole lot better in the fourth quarter.”

Including Wednesday’s 111-95 win over San Antonio, Portland has put together strong back-to-back performances.

“This was one of those games where we turned back into ourselves,” Lillard said. “Late in the game, we found a way to get stops. We made plays. We made shots, and stayed the course over a rough game.

“We were there for each other. High-fives. The emotion from everybody. It’s back to what we’re accustomed to. That’s what we do. We support each other. We move the ball, and we play exciting basketball. The crowd gets into it. That’s what happened tonight.”

Lillard feels the Blazers have waved good-bye to the type of play that resulted in a 2-8 record over 10 games in late January.

“The energy over the last two or three games has been completely different than when we had that drop-off,” he said.

The addition of Afflalo — who came to Portland via a trade deadline deal with Denver — has been important. In his third game in a Blazer uniform, the 6-5 shooting guard was terrific Friday night, scoring 18 points in 31 minutes off the bench. Afflalo was 5 for 6 from the field, 2 for 3 from 3-point range and 6 for 8 on foul shots. In the fourth quarter, he scored 11 points and got to the line seven times.

“He’s playing defense, getting to the rim, making plays for us down the stretch,” Aldridge said. “He brings a different dynamic to the team.”

Afflalo’s 18 points were the most scored by a Blazer reserve all season.

“He came in and showed why that trade was so big for us,” Lillard said.

“I’m just lost in trying to win games,” Afflalo said. “I’m constantly looking at the scoreboard to see where we’re at.

“(Oklahoma City) is a team that has been playing really well, with some players who have been playing really well. For us to be down and continue to fight all the way to the end was impressive.”

Friday’s slugfest had to be one of the most entertaining games of the season in the NBA.

“The way we played the first three quarters was bad,” Batum said with a grin. “The way we ended up the game was good. “We got some stops. The crowd was into it.

“That was a crazy game. I liked it.”

NOTES: Portland begins a two-game road trip Sunday at Sacramento. … Westbrook became the first player since LeBron James (March 2009) to record triple-doubles in three consecutive games. … Aldridge had his 22nd game with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds. … Lillard was 10 for 22 from the field, including 2 for 7 from 3-point range. He has shot 50 percent or better from the field in two of his last 19 games. Over his last 18 games, Lillard is 31 for 131 (.237) on 3-point attempts. … Matthews has been down/up/down with his shot the last three games. The Blazers’ shooting guard was 0 for 7 with four points in Sunday’s loss to Memphis, 11 for 18 with 31 points in Wednesday’s win over San Antonio and 2 for 13 with eight points Friday night. … OKC coach Scotty Brooks, before the game on Westbrook: “He’s a walking triple-double. He can rebound, defend, pass and score, and he’s been doing it for a long time.” … OKC is now 9-4 in the second of back-to-back games.

kerryeggers@portlandtribune.com

Twitter: @kerryeggers