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LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla .– After hitting a 3 point midway through the final quarter, Damian Lillard did a little dance and teammate Jusuf Nurkic pointed his wrist.
It was Dame Time, playoff edition.
“Every game since we’ve been here has been a playoff game. So that prepared us for a game like this, ”said Lillard. “It’s just one win. I’m happy to be here to make the playoffs again, but we have to move on to the next one.”
Lillard had 34 points and the Portland Trail Blazers spoiled LeBron James ‘first playoff appearance for the Los Angeles Lakers with a 100-93 win on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the teams’ playoffs.
James had 23 points, 17 rebounds and 16 assists, becoming the first player to have so many points, rebounds and assists in the playoffs. It was his 24th triple-double in the playoffs and his assists were a career high in the playoffs.
“We’ve had a few breakdowns, which you can’t have down the stretch, especially against a team like Portland,” said James.
Jusuf Nurkic had 16 points and 15 rebounds for Portland, who led by no less than 16 points in the first period. The Lakers, who were making their first playoff appearance since 2013, reduced the lead to 57-56 at the break and stayed close the rest of the way.
Trailing 78-75 in the final period, the Lakers tied at 78 on Kyle Kuzma’s 3-pointer. James’ layup put Los Angeles ahead, and Kuzma added a pair of free throws and another layup to extend it to 84-78.
Lillard’s 3-point pointer tied it again at 87 with 5:46 left and CJ McCollum’s float gave Portland the lead. Lillard said after dancing after her 3 because the song Blow the Whistle was played in the Bubble Arena, which Lillard called “the East Oakland Anthem”.
After Danny Green’s layup again tied for Los Angeles, Lillard nailed another 3 points. Anthony Davis’ dunk took the Lakers to 95-93, but Gary Trent Jr. had a 3-point that put Portland ahead 98-93 before Nurkic dunked to seal it.
Anthony Davis had 28 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers.
Portland won the NBA’s first playoff game since 1956, beating Memphis 126-122 on Saturday to advance to the playoffs for the seventh straight season. The Blazers were one of three teams that lost overall records to advance to the bubble playoffs. No team below .500 has advanced to the playoffs since 2015.
The Blazers did not have forward Zach Collins due to inflammation in his left ankle. Wenyen Gabriel started for him.
Portland led 33-17 in the first half after Nurkic’s dunk. The Lakers ranked 40-38 but couldn’t take the lead until Davis ‘dunk on James’ pass was 50-49 with just over three minutes left in the half. But it was short-lived.
The game was delayed for a while in the first half when the Lakers’ rim tilted and had to be adjusted.
TIP INS
Trail Blazers: Lillard had 48 points in Portland’s 127-119 victory over the Lakers in Los Angeles on Jan.31. So of course the Lakers were going to try and stop the MVP bubble. But it’s no different from any other game, Stotts said. “There’s not much that he hasn’t seen or that we haven’t seen,” Stotts said. … Portland is also without Rodney Hood, who is continuing his rehab following an Achilles injury, and Trevor Ariza, who chose not to play in Florida.
Lakers: Rajon Rando is in the bubble and returned to limited practice before the playoffs after being absent with a fractured left thumb. Coach Frank Vogel said Rondo was “close, but we will continue to assess him day in and day out”.
STORY: The teams have met six times in a first-round series, with the Lakers winning five. This is the 12th time that the teams have met in the playoffs.
RED HAT: James wore a familiar red outfit, but instead of President Trump’s slogan, the line “Great Again” was crossed out and a line added that read the hat: Make America stop the cops who have killed Breonna Taylor. “
FOLLOWING
The series continues with Game 2 on Thursday.
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