Blazers Out-Kick Raptors Behind Huge Games from Ayton, Grant

ThePortland Trail Blazersplayed the best overall game of their season on Monday night against theToronto Raptors. Portland shared the ball offensively more than they have in any game so far. defended comparatively smartly, and rode a massive rebounding performance from Deandre Ayton to a 99-91 victory. Portland struggled early, excelled in the middle quarters, then got saved by 23 huge rebounds from Ayton when fourth-quarter woes threatened to steal the win away.

Jerami Grant led the Blazers with 22 points on 8-18 shooting. Malcolm Brogdon added 21 off the bench. Five Blazers scored in double figures.

Here’s how the action went.

First Quarter

开拓者开始game with a missed shot, an offensive rebound turnover, and then a turnover off a pass. Meanwhile the Raptors converted, converted, converted, and converted. The first couple of minutes were like stepping into a hurricane wearing an argyle sweater.

Fortunately Jerami Grant, Scoot Henderson, and Shaedon Sharpe all scored, stemming the tide a little. But all of those shots came off of one-on-one isolation moves. They fell, but you could tell this wasn’t going to be sustainable. Toronto was scoring free and easy. The Blazers were laboring for everything they got. It wasn’t until the 6:51 mark, when Henderson found Matisse Thybulle for an open, trailing three-pointer, that the Blazers scored a bucket on anything resembling a team play. That’s an average of about two such buckets a quarter.

Portland got bailed out by five three-pointers made in the first period. That was amazing, but not sustainable. Toronto led 25-21 after one.

Second Quarter

As has been typical over the last couple games, the Blazers got big energy and solid play out of their bench to start the second quarter. Two offensive rebounds and a forced turnover led to three scores right at the rim. That actually put Portland ahead, 27-25, at the 10:00 mark. A three-pointer right after pushed the lead to five.

Even the mighty bench unit couldn’t sustain the margin, though. The defense just wasn’t quite good enough. Portland kept scoring...it was a hot night for them. But the Raptors were like a superior marathon runner, marking the lead, waiting to pass them with a strong kick.

That didn’t happen as Portland’s bench held the court in the second, though. They finally got a reasonable amount of passing going, finding mismatches and action off of screens, in something that resembled a team offense.

Toronto’s starters interrupted that roll when they checked back in. They forced more turnovers and generally played stouter defense. Portland’s lead evaporated, but at least they didn’t get obliterated. Toronto led 50-47 at the half.

Third Quarter

The third period started off plenty kind for the Blazers. It was like the starters finally got the memo in the locker room. They played tight, active defense, keeping close to dribblers, trying not to get switched into oblivion on every second play. They also limited turnovers enough to stay afloat.

The net result was a Raptors team relying on individual prowess as Portland passed around and drove through their defense. Toronto scored in the mid-range and with the occasional and-one, but that was far better, cumulatively, than the dunk fest they had generated in the first half. Scottie Barnes was the thorn in Portland’s side, scoring repeatedly, but you can’t have everything.

Portland also played impressively on offense. The iso ball of the first half took a back seat. Passes abounded...smart ones! Other than a couple sideline threes on kick-outs, the Blazers scored right down the middle of the lane on beautiful action.

The only place the Blazers lost containment in the third was on the offensive glass, mostly late. They forced a lot of Raptors misses that they couldn’t capitalize on. But they blocked a couple of huge shots in the closing minutes, preserved momentum, and took a surprising 80-74 lead into the final period.

Fourth Quarter

The fourth quarter did not start out kindly for the Blazers. Toronto scored at the rim on two assisted shots. Scottie Barnes added a third in the restricted area. When Portland finally got their defense settled and stopped the constant penetration, Toronto continued their tirade on the offensive glass.

The Blazers would still have been golden had their scoring kept up. Unfortunately, they had to make do from the foul line, as they went 1-11 from the field in the first 6:30 of the period. With enough defense at the three-point arc (Toronto went 0-fer during this span) and barely enough rebounding, they managed to preserve three points of their lead heading into crunch time. The score read 88-85, Portland with 4:00 remaining.

The next two possessions for Portland were a Malcolm Brogdon miss on a solo drive and a Scoot Henderson charge call trying to replicate same. That lead runner now heard the footsteps of the guy who had been trailing just behind him the whole race long.

Portland got another spurt of speed as Deandre Ayton grabbed his 20th rebound of the game off of an O.G Anunoby miss, then Jerami Grant buried a corner three. Brogdon hit a left-hander in the lane on the next possession, and suddenly the Blazers found themselves up 6 with just 1:44 remaining. Henderson fouled out of the game at that point, to be replaced by Toumari Camara. Brogdon missed a layup, but Ayton came to the rescue with yet another rebound, leading to a Brogdon conversion.

After Toronto scored to cut the lead to 4, Grant missed a three, but Ayton grabbed the ball AGAIN, leading to another Brogdon bucket.

Surprise, surprise. That lead runner had plenty of kick after all.

At that juncture, Portland led by 6 again, 97-91, with 25.9 seconds remaining. When Gary Trent, Jr. lost the ball on the ensuing possession, the game was over and Portland’s first win of the season secured.

Up Next

Stay tuned for an extended look at the game, coming soon!

Boxscore

The Blazers now travel to Detroit to face a young Pistons squad on Wednesday night at 4:00 PM, Pacific.