National Basketball Association
Phoenix 127, Portland 121
When: 10:00 PM ET, Thursday, March 11, 2021
Where: Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
Officials: #14 Ed Malloy, #38 Michael Smith, #28 Mousa Dagher
Attendance: N/A

Devin Booker had 35 points and Chris Paul added 19 as the Phoenix Suns rallied for a 127-121 victory over the host Portland Trail Blazers, opening the season's second half by extending their winning streak to five games.

Mikal Bridges had 18 points while Jae Crowder and Cameron Payne added 13 points each as the Suns first erased a 13-point deficit in the second quarter, then overcame multiple 11-point deficits in the third.

Forced to miss Sunday's All-Star Game at Atlanta because of a left knee sprain, Booker looked fit Thursday, going 12 of 21 from the field and 3 of 5 from 3-point range.

All-Star Damian Lillard had 30 points for the Trail Blazers while Enes Kanter had 16 points and 11 rebounds.

The Suns improved to 13-5 away from home, matching the Los Angeles Lakers for best road record in the NBA.

Trailing 55-42 in the second quarter, the Suns closed the first half on an 18-5 run to pull even at 60-60 heading into the break.

The Trail Blazers regained their double-digit advantage in the third quarter before Phoenix closed the period on an 11-4 run to pull within 94-90 heading into the fourth.

A quick 8-2 run to open the fourth, capped by a 3-pointer from Payne, gave the Suns a 98-96 advantage, their first lead since early in the first quarter.

The Suns extended that run to 24-10 to push their advantage to double digits at 114-104 on a 3-pointer from Booker with 5:01 remaining. Booker appeared to tweak his injured left knee with 1:10 remaining but stayed on the floor.

Paul, who also was an All-Star, added seven assists for the Suns while Booker had eight. Deandre Ayton and Dario Saric had 11 points each for Phoenix.

Gary Trent Jr. had 17 points for Portland while Robert Covington and Carmelo Anthony each added 13. Lillard had eight assists for the Trail Blazers.

The victory was the Suns' second over the Trail Blazers since Feb. 22. Phoenix also earned its eighth victory in the past nine games and its 14th win in the past 16.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Phoenix   Portland
Devin Booker 35 Scoring Damian Lillard 30
Devin Booker 8 Assists Damian Lillard 8
Jae Crowder 7 Rebounds Enes Kanter 11
Devin Booker 8 Free Throws Made Damian Lillard 5
Abdel Nader 2 Steals Robert Covington 2
Mikal Bridges 1 Blocks Robert Covington 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Phoenix 127 59.0 13-24 16-19 28 38 1 6 13
Portland 121 45.7 18-43 17-19 26 41 2 8 11
Upcoming Games
  • Portland will play their next game on the road against Minnesota. The Trail Blazers have a W/L % of .571 after a win and .600 after a loss.
  • Phoenix will play their next game at home against Indiana. The Suns have a W/L % of .667 after a win and .750 after a loss.