Blazers let one slip away; ‘Those are the ones you lose sleep over’
Robert Williams said the Blazers’ 120-108 loss to San Antonio in Game 3 Friday night at Moda Center was “one you lose sleep over”
Ever had a fish on the line, a whopper, suitable for framing, and it got away?
It happened to the Trail Blazers Friday night at Moda Center.
They had San Antonio, going without its franchise player, hooked and ready for filleting. Portland was leading 82-67 with five minutes left in the third quarter, seemingly well on its way to a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven first-round playoff series heading into Sunday’s Game 4 at home.
Then the worm turned. Over the last 17 minutes, the Spurs — with Victor Wembanyama watching from the bench in street clothes while in concussion protocol — outscored the Blazers 53-26 to pull out a startling 120-108 victory.
“A loss like this pisses you off,” Portland center Robert Williams III said. “You feel like you had the game. They were down a great player, but they are still a great team, and they came out with the ‘W.’ These are ones that you lose sleep over.”
In Wemby’s absence, guards Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper more than rose to the occasion, combining for 60 points, including 21 in the decisive fourth quarter.
Castle, in his second NBA season, scored 33 points in 34 minutes, sinking 10 of 18 shots from the field, 3 of 4 from 3-point range and converting 10 of 11 free throw attempts.
Harper, a rookie, poured in 27 points in 30 minutes, going 9 for 12 from the field, 4 of 5 from the 3-point stripe and 5 for 6 from the foul line, while grabbing 10 rebounds.
“Harper and Castle were unbelievable,” Portland coach Tiago Splitter said. “They played a very good game, getting to the line, shooting 3s.”
Even with Wemby out of action, the Spurs won the rebound battle 50-45, pulling 14 off the offensive glass.
Portland coach Tiago Splitter said the Spurs were more physical team in Friday’s game
“They were the more physical team,” Splitter said. “They just played better. They made shots. They were physical on defense, rebounding, pushing (Donovan Clingan) around. Rebounding, 50-50 balls — that was the game.”
Clingan never got into a flow and Splitter used him only 17 minutes, in which the 7-2 center collected six points and 10 rebounds. Williams contributed seven points, seven boards and two blocked shots in his 19 minutes. Splitter chose to go small at times, employing Deni Avdija, Toumani Camara and Jerami Grant on the front line to just so-so results.
It was a forgettable night for Avdija, who averaged 24.2 points, 6.9 rebounds and 6.7 assists during a regular season that saw him make his first All-Star Game. The 6-9 forward got to the foul line 16 times, making 12, but was thwarted by a San Antonio defense that mixed its coverage, clogged the lane and sent double-team help every time he drove to the basket. Avdija finished with 19 points, nine assists and six rebounds but was 3 for 15 from the field, making his final attempt after the outcome was no longer in doubt.
“They did a good job shrinking the lane, making it crowded,” Splitter said. “We missed so many easy shots at the rim. We gotta do better. We gotta space better, all of us.”
Jrue Holiday gave an excellent performance, leading the Blazers with 29 points on 12-for-18 shooting, including 5 of 9 from 3-point land, while compiling six rebounds, five assists and four steals in 41 whirlwind minutes. Scoot Henderson, coming off his 31-point showing in Portland’s 106-103 Game 2 victory at San Antonio, scored eight of the Blazers’ first 13 points Friday night and finished with 21, making 8 of 18 from the field and 5 of 10 on 3’s.
Portland knocked down 10 of 21 3-point attempts en route to a 65-59 halftime lead, then was only 4 of 17 from beyond the arc the rest of the way.
“We got good-looking shots; we just didn’t make enough of them,” Holiday said. “They rebounded better in the second half; before that, we were getting offensive rebounds and kick-out 3’s. They did a good job of preventing that (in the second half), and their transition game was pretty good. That is something we have to tighten up.”
When Portland extended its lead to 15 points midway through the third quarter, the partisans in the sellout crowd of 20,483 — riled up for the city’s first taste of playoff action in five years — were howling. The Spurs responded by closing the period out with a 21-5 run to take a 88-87 advantage into the final period.
The visitors kept the pressure on, and as their lead expanded and several calls went their way, frustration set in with the home team.
“They took things to another level, and we got caught complaining too much,” Williams said. “We have to keep our composure, keep doing what got you there. We have to match their intensity but also keep our heads.”
I am with Williams on that one. Fans will be fans, and chants of “Refs, you suck!” rang out several times in the second half. The players, though, have to lay off the bellyaching and take care of business on the court.
San Antonio shot well — .471 from the field, a sizzling .485 on 3s, .786 from the free-throw line — and dished out 27 assists on 41 baskets.
Splitter stressed that the team that has played “more physical” has been the winner in all of the games in the series thus far. Holiday shrugged when asked what that meant to him.
“I don’t know,” he said. “Deni lost a tooth (part of one, from a De’Aaron Fox elbow) and got a foul called on him. So it’s kind of wild. But that’s just part of playoff basketball.”
The Blazers need to get Avdija back in rhythm. After a 30-point, 10-rebound, five-assist performance in Portland’s 111-98 loss in the opener, he has averaged 16.5 points and made only 8 of 28 shots from the field — 2 for 6 on 3s — in the past two games. Even with San Antonio’s defense focusing on him, he has to find a way to get the ball in the basket more often.
The Blazers also need more from Camara, who was 1 for 6 from the field, 0 for 4 from 3-point range and had only two points, three rebounds and one assist in 33 minutes Friday night. Portland’s defensive stopper is averaging 6.0 points while shooting .300 from the field in the series.
Clingan, too, has been largely ineffective, averaging 6.7 points and 9.3 rebounds while shooting .320 from the field in the three games.
The Blazers basically ducked the question of the night: Did they fail to take advantage of a golden opportunity with Wembanyama out of action?
“Always when you lose a game it’s an opportunity lost when you were up by what we were tonight,” Splitter said. “(San Antonio) is a very good team. It was their night. Sunday is going to be different.”
“It always sucks when you feel like you have a game under control,” Holiday said. “This loss hurts, but we got another one Sunday. You can’t hang your (head) on it. Take it on the chin tonight, and tomorrow we have to get back to work.”
The Spurs didn’t hang their heads with Wembanyama, the league’s Defensive Player of the Year and one of three finalists for MVP, on the sidelines.
“We have a lot of dogs who aren’t going to quit on our team,” Castle told reporters afterward.
Wembanyama looked fit and in good spirits as he worked out and shot baskets during the early warm-up session prior to Friday’s game. My bottom dollar is on him being ready to go for Sunday’s Game 4. The Blazers had better be ready, too. The next one is as close to a “must-win” as it gets.
The fans will likely bring it, too, just as they did Friday night when they shook the house to the rafters with noise.
“I feel bad that we couldn’t bring them a ‘W,’ ” Splitter said. “The fans were amazing. They were bringing energy. They were there with us. We are going to need that push again Sunday.”
The Blazers’ challenge now is considerable. They must win three of the next four games in the series, including at least one at San Antonio, ostensibly with Wembanyama in uniform. The Blazers have already won at Frost Bank Arena in Game 2, but that was with Wemby out of action at the end.
Victor Wembanyama, here shooting prior to Game 3, seems likely to be in action for Game 4 Sunday at Moda
That’s not the way the Blazers will look at it, of course. One at a time, beginning Sunday at Moda, will be their mantra.
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