PORTLAND, Ore. — Damian Lillard had 34 points and nine rebounds, and the Portland Trail Blazers raced to a 140-129 victory over the Houston Rockets on Monday night.
The Blazers scored 50 points in the first quarter, setting a franchise record for scoring in a period, and tied an NBA record for 3-pointers made in a quarter with 12. CJ McCollum had 21 points in the first as Portland built a 17-point lead.
McCollum finished with 28 points and Norman Powell also scored 28 for the Blazers, who never trailed as they moved within one-half game of fifth-place Dallas in the Western Conference.
Kelly Olynyk had 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the NBA-worst Rockets, and D.J. Augustin also scored 21.
Houston withstood Portland’s early barrage and chipped away at the lead. A 3-pointer by Armoni Brooks got the Rockets within 116-111 with 9:13 left, but Lillard’s 3-pointer put the Blazers back up by double digits with 7:18 remaining.
TIP-INS
Rockets: Were without a host of key players, including Christian Wood. … DaQuan Jeffries was called for a flagrant-1 foul against McCollum in the third quarter.
Blazers: Carmelo Anthony missed his second straight game with a sprained right ankle. … Derrick Jones Jr. had 11 points, three rebounds and three assists in 23 minutes. … Terry Stotts coached his 1,000th NBA game.
UP NEXT
Rockets: At the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night.
Blazers: At Utah on Wednesday night.
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