The Portland Trail Blazers were looking to bounce back with a victory on Thursday night, after suffering a 114-112 defeat against the Suns on Tuesday. They hosted the Toronto Raptors for their preseason matchup at the Moda Center in Portland hoping to put on a show for their fans and get their first preseason win. The Raptors played without their best player, DeMar DeRozan, as the coach decided to give him a night off.
Portland survives and gets the win
Both teams opened up the game well, as they went back and forth in the first quarter. Portland held a 27-26 lead after the first 12 minutes of the game, and midway through the second quarter, their lead was 13 points (49-36).
The Trail Blazers led 62-52 at halftime and after three quarters of playing time, their lead was even bigger. Heading into the fourth quarter, the score was 85-69 for the home team. The Raptors responded with a great fourth quarter of their own, as they outscored Portland 32-21 in the final period. But it wasn't enough, and the Trail Blazers celebrated a 106-101 victory.
Portland had five players in double-digit scoring on Thursday night, with Damian Lillard leading the way. Lillard finished the game 16 points, eight assists and five rebounds, while CJ. McCollum contributed with 15 points and four assists. Jusuf Nurkic also played a solid game as he finished with 12 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes of action.
For the Raptors, it was Kyle Lowry who led them in scoring. Lowry finished with a game-high 23 points, and also added six assists and three rebounds. Norman Powell added 15 points for Toronto while Alfonzo McKinnie finished with 13 points and eight rebounds off the bench.
The Nets dominate the Heat
The Brooklyn Nets faced the Miami Heat on Thursday night, in front of a semi-sellout crowd at their Barclays Center in New York.
It was obvious in the first quarter that the Nets came ready to play, as they outscored the Heat 33-23 in the first period. At halftime, Brooklyn's lead was 14 points (59-45) and it became apparent that a blowout was in store. Heading into the final period of the game, the Nets held an 83-70 lead and ended up winning the game easily 107-88.
Jeremy Lin led the Nets in scoring on Thursday night, as he finished the game with 16 points and also added four assists. Sean Kilpatrick added 14 points and seven rebounds off the Nets bench while Joe Harris scored 10 points.
Tyler Johnson was the leading scorer for the Heat as he scored 21 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Hassan Whiteside added 19 points and nine rebounds in 18 minutes of playing time for Miami.
