.The Spurs seemed poised for a comfortable win after narrow victories against New York and Washington, but nearly let the game get away by closing out the contest as sloppily as they opened.Portland went on an 18-2 run, starting midway through the fourth quarter, that was capped by a pair of 3s by Lillard, closing within 107-104 with 1:57 remaining. A dunk by Lillard cut the margin to a point, 109-108, with 1:10 left. Lillard and Anthony Tolliver missed consecutive 3-point attempts with the Blazers trailing 113-100. DeRozan missed a pair of free throws, setting up Lillard's final shot.San Antonio outscored Portland 30-27 in the third quarter after scoring just 19 points in the first period.DeRozan's baseline drive and layup on Rodney Hood gave the Spurs their first lead at 59-58 with 8:44 remaining in the third. DeRozan has struggled offensively at the start of the season, shooting 41 percent. He was 10 for 16 on a series of hard drives to the basket.Blazers wing Kent Bazemore, who primarily defended DeRozan, fouled out with 6:27 remaining in the game.The Trail Blazers made three consecutive 3-pointers to open the game and rolled to a 23-4 lead midway through the first. The Spurs missed four shots and had four turnovers, going scoreless for four minutes following Aldridge's 14-foot jumper at 9:32.Portland finished 10 for 33 from 3-point range.Hood finished with 11 points and Skal Labissiere and Anfernee Simons had 10 points each for the Trail Blazers.TIP-INSBlazers: Portland had an 11-man roster available, but coach Terry Stotts opted not to play Nassir Little or Gary Trent Jr. ... Former Spurs center Pau Gasol has not played this season for the Blazers as he continues to rehabilitate from left foot surgery in May. ... Bazemore finished with three points and three rebounds in 24 minutes before fouling out.Spurs: San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said Dejounte Murray's minutes will be restricted after he missed last season following right ACL surgery in July 2018. Murray will not play in back-to-back games and will be limited to about five minutes per quarter. Murray had seven points and eight assists in 22 minutes against the Blazers. ... San Antonio will play on the road for the first time this season, taking on former Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers in Los Angeles on Thursday.UP NEXTBlazers: At Oklahoma City on Wednesday night.Spurs: At Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday night.---More NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Oct 28, 2019The San Antonio Spurs will look to wrap up a season-opening three-game homestand with another win when they host the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.San Antonio heads into Monday's battle with two wins in two starts, the latest a 124-122 victory over Washington on Saturday. That win was finalized by a layup from DeMar DeRozan with 5.5 seconds to play and a Derrick White block of a driving layup attempt by the Wizards' Bradley Beal on the game's final possession.DeRozan scored 10 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter, when he made 5 of 6 shots."I love the moments," DeRozan told reporters when asked about his fourth quarter. "I don't think about mistakes. I don't think about previous 3-pointers or mistakes. It's a different type of game in the last five or six minutes. When the game is close, you have to think that way." "I tell him all the time, I need you to take over at all times, not just when we really, really need it," San Antonio point guard Dejounte Murray said of DeRozan. "But he did his thing (Saturday). None of us were shocked or surprised. That's DeMar for you." LaMarcus Aldridge finished with a game-high 27 points and added nine rebounds in the win over Washington, while Murray hit for 19 points and grabbed 10 boards.Bryn Forbes and White rounded out San Antonio's double-figure scoring against the Wizards with 16 and 10 points, respectively, as the Spurs recorded their 20th straight home victory over Washington.The Trail Blazers head to San Antonio after winning at Dallas 121-119 on Sunday. Damian Lillard's layup with 26 seconds to play gave Portland the lead, and his block on a putback attempt by Dorian Finney-Smith with 10 seconds left cemented the win for Portland.CJ McCollum led the Trail Blazers with 35 points in the victory -- the Blazers' second in three games to start the season. Lillard scored 28, Rodney Hood added 20, Kent Bazemore had 11 points and Zach Collins hit for 10 points for Portland. Hassan Whiteside pulled down 14 rebounds.Portland needed to find a defensive stopper in the offseason to complement its offensive firepower and Bazemore, who was acquired from Atlanta in a trade for Evan Turner, has stepped into those shoes in the early going.Long and athletic at 6-foot-5 and 200 pounds, Bazemore has shown a desire for harassing opponents and might be the Trail Blazers' most disruptive defensive force in recent years."I wake up to play great defense, fly around, and just make it tough on the other team," Bazemore told The Oregonian before Sunday's game in Dallas. "That's why I play the game." In the season-opening loss against Denver, Bazemore recorded five steals, and then two nights later in a win at Sacramento, he blocked two shots and grabbed eight rebounds."I found if I wanted to stick around in this league, I had to be different," Bazemore added. "I don't really have the offensive skillset to be elite, but defensively, I can really help. I knew if that became what I was known for, I could stay around for a long time. You need those stoppers." San Antonio and Portland split their four games last season, with each team winning twice and marking the third time in the last six seasons the season series finished tied. The Spurs lead the all-time series, but just 86-84.--Field Level Media
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