The Portland Trail Blazers overcame an emotionally-charged Minnesota Timberwolves squad Monday, escaping with a 106-101 road win behind Damian Lillard’s big night.
Lillard scored a game-high 34 points, to go along with seven assists.
C.J. McCollum also chipped in with 18 points in the victory.
Per The Oregonian:
Minnesota played with poise and fire early, hitting 12 of their first 18 shots and earning 12 free throws in the first quarter while building a 17-point lead. Blazers point Damian Lillard led Portland back in the second quarter. He put together his best game of the young season against the Timberwolves, finishing with 34 points and seven assists, carrying the Blazers when the rest of the offense was sputtering. […] “I don’t think I played tonight any different than I’ve been trying to play,” he said. “I think tonight it worked better. Tonight I made shots.”
C.J. McCollum scored nine of his 18 points in the second quarter as the Blazers rallied from the early deficit to tie the game up at the half. Lillard continued his onslaught in the third, adding 15 points in the quarter as the Blazers took a slim lead into the fourth.
The Blazers first road win wasn’t pretty. They literally stole it out of Minnesota’s grasp in the closing seconds, but it was important victory for a team coming off back-to-back double-digit losses, embarking on its first true road swing of the season. […] “We played a really resilient game,” Lillard said. “We kept answering and we found a way to get it done.”
