Bulls secure shock win on the road in Memphis…
The San Antonio Spurs suffered another crushing and draining defeat on Friday as Damian Lillard helped the Portland Trail Blazers secure a triple overtime win over the defending champions.
Lillard scored a career-high 43 points, including 16 after regulation, as the Trail Blazers sent the Spurs to another disappointing loss which sees them drop to 17-10 for the season.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 32 points and 16 rebounds while Wesley Matthews added 16 points as Portland (21-6) extended their winning streak to four games as coach Terry Stotts described the win as “probably our best win of the season”.
In contrast, San Antonio have now lost three straight overtime games at home despite Tim Duncan producing another big performance on Friday with 32 points and 10 rebounds.
Danny Green added 27 points while Tiago Splitter scored 14, but there were no excuses from Gregg Popovich after the game despite Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard still being sidelined.
There was a shock in the West with the Memphis Grizzlies falling to a defeat at home to the Chicago Bulls as Jimmy Butler and Nikola Mirotic stole the show for the visitors.
Mirotic scored a career-best 27 points after converting all six of his 3-pointers on Friday, and that coupled with 31 points from Butler was enough to see off the Grizzlies and improve Chicago to 17-9 for the season.
Aaron Brook scored 17 points, Joakim Noah finished with 10 points and 13 rebounds, but it was Mirotic who caught the eye of coach Tom Thibodeau, who was without Derrick Rose for the second straight game due to illness.
“He’s not afraid,” Thibodeau said. “He makes tough plays. He hustles all the time. He’s never satisfied, and I love that about him.”
Over in the East, the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Brooklyn Nets behind 22 points and nine assists from LeBron James. However, Mike Miller also had a huge hand in the win as he connected on seven 3-pointers to finish with 21 points.
The Toronto Raptors were also victorious with Kyle Lowry leading them to a win over the Detroit Pistons with 15 points, five rebounds and seven assists, while Russell Westbrook was also in fine form on Friday as he helped the Oklahoma City Thunder overcome the Los Angeles Lakers with 31 points and 10 assists.
NBA Results
Utah Jazz 101-94 Orlando Magic
Charlotte Hornets 109-91 Philadelphia 76ers
Minnesota Timberwolves 98-114 Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets 91-95 Cleveland Cavaliers
Toronto Raptors 110-100 Detroit Pistons
Washington Wizards 105-103 Miami Heat
Chicago Bulls 103-97 Memphis Grizzlies
Portland Trail Blazers 129-119 San Antonio Spurs
Los Angeles Clippers 106-109 Denver Nuggets
Oklahoma City Thunder 104-103 Los Angeles Lakers
COMMENTS