National Basketball Association
Portland 126, New Orleans 124
When: 9:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 17, 2021
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Officials: #6 Tony Brown, #21 Dedric Taylor, #65 Nate Green
Attendance: 1940

Damian Lillard capped his 43-point night with the decisive three-point play as the visiting Portland Trail Blazers won their sixth consecutive game, defeating the New Orleans Pelicans 126-124 on Wednesday.

Lillard, who also tied a career high with 16 assists, drove to the basket and for a layup and subsequent foul shot that gave Portland a 126-124 lead with 16 seconds left. New Orleans' Lonzo Ball missed a 3-point attempt and Brandon Ingram missed another jumper on the final possession.

The Blazers finished a 3-0 road trip thanks in part to Gary Trent Jr. adding 23 points, Derrick Jones Jr. scoring 13, Carmelo Anthony and Robert Covington contributing 12 each and Enes Kanter putting up 11.

Zion Williamson tied a career high with 36 points for the Pelicans. Ball scored 21, JJ Redick had 16, Ingram scored 14, Willy Hernangomez had 11 points and 17 rebounds and Eric Bledsoe scored 10.

New Orleans led by 10 points at halftime but Jones had two baskets as Portland cut the margin in half less than two minutes into the third quarter.

Covington made back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Blazers an 85-84 lead.

The lead changed hands four more times before Trent's buzzer-beating 3-pointer gave Portland a 94-91 edge at the end of the third quarter.

Trent made two 3-pointers to give the Blazers a 103-98 advantage before Redick's 3-pointer gave the Pelicans a 105-103 lead.

Lillard's 3-pointer put Portland back on top, but New Orleans regained the lead, 117-116, when Redick made a 3-pointer with 2:05 left.

The Blazers took a 123-122 lead when Lillard fed Jones for a layup with 28.7 seconds remaining.

Williamson made two free throws to put the Pelicans back on top with 26 seconds to go before Lillard made the game-winner.

Lillard scored 15 points as Portland took a 35-30 at the end of the first quarter.

The Pelicans shot 63.6 percent (14 of 22) from the field and 66.7 percent (6 of 9) from 3-point range in the second quarter. They outscored the Blazers 39-24 and led by as many as 15 points before taking a 69-59 halftime lead.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Portland   New Orleans
Damian Lillard 43 Scoring Zion Williamson 36
Damian Lillard 16 Assists Brandon Ingram 6
Robert Covington 8 Rebounds Willy Hernangomez 17
Damian Lillard 8 Free Throws Made Zion Williamson 11
Robert Covington 2 Steals Zion Williamson 2
Robert Covington 4 Blocks Josh Hart 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Portland 126 51.1 18-41 16-18 26 31 7 6 9
New Orleans 124 48.3 15-32 23-29 25 51 1 5 12
Upcoming Games
  • New Orleans will play their next game at home against Phoenix. The Pelicans have a W/L % of .462 after a win and .400 after a loss.
  • Portland will play their next game at home against Washington. The Trail Blazers have a W/L % of .588 after a win and .727 after a loss.