Clippers vs Trail Blazers: Game 3 Score, Twitter Reaction from 2016 NBA Playoffs

After two double-digit road losses in the series, the Portland Trail Blazers closed the gap with a 96-88 home win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday at the Moda Center.

Portland finished the game on a 15-3 run and now trails just 2-1 in the series.

Damian Lillard answered the call with his team in a hole, scoring 32 points and grabbing five rebounds. He started the scoring with a three-pointer and finished the first quarter with 12 of Portland's 22 points.

As his team noted, it was an impressive opening frame for the 25-year-old:

He had a solid game overall, connecting on 10 of 20 shots, three from three-point range and all nine of his free throws.

However, Lillard wasn't the only Portland guard lighting up the scoreboard in the first half. Most Improved Player Award winner C.J. McCollum dropped 17 first-half points on his way to 27 for the game with shots such as this pull-up three-pointer, as the Blazers illustrated:

Zach Harper of CBS Sports noted how well the third-year guard was playing:

Tulsa assistant basketball coach Kim English used a nonscientific chart to describe McCollum 's play:

"

Analytical breakdown of CJ McCollum's confidence. pic.twitter.com/ewYOcIEJWD

— Kim English (@Englishscope24) April 24, 2016"

Dan Woike of the Orange County Register was not impressed with the Clippers after the first 24 minutes saw them trail 49-40:

It was a poor shooting effort, as Los Angeles missed 29 of its first 47 shots, including nine of 10 from downtown.

Point guard Chris Paul kept his team in the game with 13 points and six assists in the first half, while no one else scored more than eight points.

It was a better third quarter for Los Angeles, as it outscored the Blazers by six, cutting the deficit to three heading into the fourth.

Josh Eberley of Hoops Habit thought the Clippers could ride Paul to a victory if he got hot in the fourth quarter:

The Clippers took their first lead since the first quarter, 78-77, thanks to an Austin Rivers layup in transition with 6:26 left to play.

Portland then fought back behind Lillard, whose fadeaway jumper gave the Blazers an 86-85 lead following two missed free throws by DeAndre Jordan, as Portland's Twitter account showed:

The center missed two more on the next possession before Maurice Harkless' spinning baseline layup gave Portland an 88-85 lead and brought the crowd to its feet.

Harkless then gave Portland a five-point lead with a monster putback dunk with 55 seconds to play. He finished the game with 10 points.

Mason Plumlee was another big reason for the victory, scoring just six points but grabbing a career-high 21 rebounds and dishing out nine assists. The 59 combined points from Lillard and McCollum were 27.5 points more than their combined average in the first two games of the series. 

Paul led the way for Los Angeles with 26 points and nine assists, while Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford had 19 points. Jordan finished with 11 points and 16 rebounds, and Blake Griffin had just 12 points on 5-of-16 shooting.

Portland avoided going down 3-0 and having to become the first NBA team in history to climb out of that deficit. While Los Angeles still looks like the better team in the series, Portland proved it will not roll over and take a loss.

The Blazers will play Game 4 at home again Monday before heading back to Los Angeles for Game 5 Wednesday.

Postgame Reaction

Portland head coach Terry Stotts was happy with the victory and said his players were a "determined team tonight," via CSNNW:

Clippers head coach Doc Rivers wasn't thrilled with the effort his team put forth, per CSNNW: "I just thought they were the more physical, tougher team tonight."  

Lillard said he made adjustments in Game 2 that helped him Saturday, per Mike Richman of the Oregonian.

"Last game, I said we made the right adjustments," Lillard said. "I got looks early I just didn't make them. We stuck with that this game. And I came out and I knew if we lost this game I knew we would've been in some real trouble so I just wanted to come out and leave it out there."

Despite his strong play, Lillard gave props to Plumlee, who became just the fourth player in the past 30 seasons to have at least 20 rebounds and nine assists in a playoff game, per ESPN Stats & Info.

"(Plumlee) was our best player tonight," Lillard said, per CSNNW.

McCollum thought the victory was a team effort, per NBA TV. "I think we were more aggressive tonight," he said. "Obviously playing at home in front of the best fans in the NBA gets you a little juiced up, but I thought guys were locked in."