Portland Trail Blazers (39-38) beat LA the Clippers (39-37) 114-104 on the road on Tuesday, March 31, never trailing at a quarter break.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Trail Blazers struck first, taking the opening quarter 34-31 and a 3-point lead after one. The Trail Blazers kept the pressure on with a 28-15 second quarter, carrying a 16-point lead into halftime.
The Trail Blazers won the third 29-28 to create some separation, taking a 17-point lead into the fourth. The Clippers took the fourth 30-23; the Trail Blazers held on for a 114-104 regulation win.
What decided it
The Trail Blazers grabbed 45% of their own misses, while the Clippers recovered 21.1%. The second chances kept adding up.
The Clippers did win one battle, the free-throw line: FT rate of 23.7 against 18.7. The Trail Blazers made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 94 possessions per team, the Trail Blazers produced 121.9 points per 100 possessions to 111.2 for the Clippers.
The Trail Blazers' reserves also made a difference, outscoring the opposing bench 28-10.
Who made the difference
Deni Avdija was the game's biggest individual force for POR: 28 pts, 11 reb, 8 ast on 8-15 shooting. His Game Score of 27.2 led everyone. His team was +8 with him on the floor.
John Collins led the Clippers with 17 pts, 6 reb, 1 ast on 7-8 shooting, good for a 18.7 Game Score.
Deni Avdija (28 pts, 11 reb, 8 ast) recorded a double-double.
What it means
By our Win Meter this was an upset: The Trail Blazers entered with about a 27% chance.
Across the last 5 meetings in our records, LA the Clippers lead 4-1.
The Trail Blazers are now 39-38, and the Clippers are 39-37. The Trail Blazers last five before this game: L-W-W-L-W.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.