Trail Blazers vs Clippers: Game 2 Score, Twitter Reaction from 2016 NBA Playoffs
The Los Angeles Clippers pulled away late to earn a 102-81 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night inside Staples Center in Los Angeles. With the win, the Clippers take a 2-0 lead in the first round of the 2016 NBA playoffs.
Pro Basketball Talk's Kurt Helin pointed to one of Portland's biggest problems in Game 2:
Damian Lillard shot just 6-of-22 from the floor, while C.J. McCollum went 6-of-17. Sports Illustrated's Ben Golliver noted that Lillard's struggles can be traced back to two years ago:
For the Blazers to have any shot of winning Wednesday, they needed their supporting cast to leave its imprint on the game, and that didn't happen. As a team, they shot 34.1 percent, including 19.2 percent from beyond the arc.
The Clippers bench also outscored the Portland bench 43-10, supplementing their top three stars.
DeAndre Jordan scored only three points but grabbed 18 rebounds, dished out five assists and blocked three shots. Blake Griffin was one rebound short of a double-double, finishing with 12 points and nine boards. Chris Paul, meanwhile, led all scorers with 25 points, adding six rebounds and five assists.
The Clippers looked to be on their way to a blowout after they built upon a 22-17 first quarter to go ahead by 15, 34-19, with 8:45 until halftime. Portland began inching back into the game, but a J.J. Redick layup at the 3:59 mark put L.A. ahead by 10, 43-33.
Then, Paul picked up his second and third fouls of the game, the latter coming with 2:58 left in the half. With the Clippers point guard off the floor, the Blazers trimmed the deficit to just four points, 47-43, by the end of the second quarter.
CSN Northwest's Jason Quick thought Portland had plenty of positives to take away from the first half despite trailing:
The Blazers did, however, make only 16 of their 47 field-goal attempts. They found the paint to be particularly inhospitable, with Jordan constantly harassing shooters inside:
The Clippers big man had only one block through the first two quarters, but the box score doesn't properly account for the number of shot attempts he influenced by his mere presence. SB Nation's Mike Prada had high praise for Jordan's work on the defensive end:
Pinwheel Empire added that Jordan and Paul were making life extremely difficult for Lillard:
Portland continued to remain competitive through the third quarter. The Clippers led by as many as 12 points, but the Blazers didn't let the game get out of hand. With Los Angeles up only six points, 67-61, going into the fourth, Game 2 looked to have the makings of a nail-biter.
Instead, the home team began the final quarter on an 11-2 run to go up by 15 points, 78-63. The Clippers' relentless defense continued wearing down the Blazers, and once the game was heading into its final stretch, Portland had nothing left to counteract that impact.
NBA on TNT shared replays of Los Angeles' numerous blocks under the basket:
The Blazers will hope to get their first win in the series when they welcome the Clippers on Saturday for Game 3. Portland's only regular-season victory over L.A. came at home, while the team was 28-13 inside the Moda Center, compared to 16-25 on the road this year.
CBSSports.com's Matt Moore believes the Trail Blazers will have a firm response when they step on the hardwood again:
According to ESPN Stats & Info, though, Los Angeles has now won five games in a row over Portland by an average of 13.8 points. It's difficult to see how the Blazers can turn the series around without Lillard finding his shot, and the combination of Jordan and Paul is blanketing him everywhere on the court right now.
Portland is too good to get swept in this series, but overcoming a 2-0 deficit gives the team a massive mountain to climb.
Postgame Reaction
Blazers head coach Terry Stotts argued that Austin Rivers' three-pointer with 8:34 left in the game was a major turning point. The Clippers guard gave L.A. a 76-63 lead.
"We had a good defensive stand in that possession," Stotts said, per Mike Richman of the Oregonian. "If it bounces long and we run the other way...that was a big momentum play. Took it to 13, and gave them a lot of energy where it could have been reversed."
Rivers helped spark a great performance from the Clippers bench. After the game, head coach Doc Rivers discussed how the team's starters were pushing for the reserves to stay on the floor for longer stretches, per NBA TV:
"They played the right way from top to bottom," said Griffin of the team's subs, per Dan Woike of the Orange County Register. "They played with the right spirit. They got it tonight."
