Trail Blazers Rally From 22 Points Down to Defeat Thunder
Deni Avdija scored 26 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and dished out nine assists as the Portland Trail Blazers erased a 22-point deficit to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 121-119 on Wednesday night.
Key Contributions
- Jrue Holiday added 22 points, including two clutch free throws that put Portland ahead 121-118 with six seconds remaining.
- Jerami Grant scored 20 points off the bench, helping the Blazers hand the defending NBA champions their first loss of the season.
Game Highlights
The Thunder, now with an 8-1 record, were down by three when Isaiah Joe was fouled on a jumper with 0.5 seconds left. After a replay review confirmed Joe’s toe was on the 3-point line, he made his first free throw but intentionally missed the second. Oklahoma City failed to convert on the last-second tip-in attempt.
Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points, while Aaron Wiggins added 27.
Oklahoma City was without key players Chet Holmgren, Lu Dort, and Alex Caruso, all of whom sat out after playing in Tuesday’s win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
Late Game Action
Holiday’s jumper gave Portland its first lead of the night at 97-96 with 6:44 remaining. Following a forced backcourt violation by Oklahoma City, Holiday hit a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 100-96, but Wiggins responded with a 5-0 personal run to put the Thunder ahead 101-100. The teams traded leads until Grant’s jumper gave Portland a 105-104 advantage.
Summary
This victory marked Portland’s resilience as they overcame a large deficit and disrupted Oklahoma City’s strong start to the season.