National Basketball Association
Portland 104, Houston 92
When: 8:00 PM ET, Friday, November 12, 2021
Where: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Officials: #25 Tony Brothers, #84 Jenna Schroeder, #18 Matt Boland
Attendance: 15468

Damian Lillard scored 20 points, Nassir Little chipped in a double-double off the bench and the Portland Trail Blazers earned their first road win with a 104-92 victory over the Houston Rockets on Friday.

Lillard drilled a pair of third-quarter 3-pointers that helped the Trail Blazers reclaim control after the Rockets cut what was a 14-point deficit to 65-60 on a Jae'Sean Tate basket at the 5:32 mark of the period.

Lillard capped a brief spurt that featured a Robert Covington 3-pointer and two Jusuf Nurkic free throws. A Little dunk put Portland ahead by 17, its largest lead of the night.

Lillard added six rebounds and seven assists to pace a balanced attack for Portland. C.J. McCollum added 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists while Little (13 points, 14 boards) led the bench brigade. The Trail Blazers received 42 points from their reserves.

The Rockets dropped their 10th consecutive game and were undone by their poor shooting. Houston finished 34 for 85 from the floor and missed 25 of 32 3-pointers. The Rockets went more than seven minutes without a field goal during one stretch in the second quarter and completed that period shooting 6 of 23 from the floor while missing all six of their 3-pointers.

Tate finished with 14 points and six rebounds despite picking up three quick fouls in the first quarter. Kevin Porter Jr. tallied 18 points, five rebounds and five assists while Christian Wood grabbed 15 rebounds to go along with eight points. Eric Gordon scored 11 off the bench.

Portland seized control with a 26-8 run that bridged the opening two periods, including a 13-2 push that capped the first quarter. Little had seven points and an assist during the closing surge and McCollum beat the buzzer to give the Trail Blazers a 30-27 lead entering the second.

A Lillard 3 pushed the Portland lead to 43-33 before the Trail Blazers went more than three minutes without a field goal. But the Rockets endured an even longer drought and, despite a Wood putback just prior to the first-half buzzer, Houston trailed 55-45 at the intermission.

The Trail Blazers had been 0-6 on the road this season.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Portland   Houston
Damian Lillard 20 Scoring Kevin Porter Jr. 18
Damian Lillard 7 Assists Kevin Porter Jr. 5
Nassir Little 14 Rebounds Christian Wood 15
Jusuf Nurkic 10 Free Throws Made Danuel House Jr. 3
Jusuf Nurkic 3 Steals Eric Gordon 2
Robert Covington 1 Blocks Eric Gordon 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Portland 104 39.1 11-36 25-31 21 52 4 10 14
Houston 92 40.0 7-32 17-27 13 49 6 6 13
Upcoming Games
  • Houston will play their next game at home against Phoenix. The Rockets have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .091 after a loss.
  • Portland will play their next game on the road against Denver. The Trail Blazers have a W/L % of .400 after a win and .500 after a loss.