OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 27 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Portland Trail Blazers for the second time in three days, 101-98 on Wednesday night.
Gilgeous-Alexander had a good week against Portland — he hit a winning basket as time expired against the Trail Blazers on Monday, also in Oklahoma City, to highlight a 35-point performance.
It was the third straight win for Oklahoma City. The streak follows a five-game losing skid.
Jerami Grant scored 17 points for Portland. Damian Lillard, who entered the game averaging 28.3 points, finished with 16 points on 6-for-19 shooting for the Trail Blazers.
Lillard missed his first six shots and didn’t score until halfway through the second quarter. Still, the Trail Blazers led 54-49 at halftime despite Gilgeous-Alexander's 18 points.
The Thunder led 99-98 in the closing seconds. Oklahoma City's Josh Giddey rebounded his miss, but Lillard tied him up and forced a jump ball that Portland won. Lillard missed a difficult 18-foot fadeaway, and the Thunder rebounded with 0.9 seconds remaining. Gilgeous-Alexander made two free throws with 0.3 seconds left, and Portland couldn't get a shot off on its final possession.
TIP-INS
Trail Blazers: C Jusuf Nurkic returned after missing Monday’s game with right calf soreness. ... Lillard was issued a technical in the third quarter. He also was called for one on Monday against the Thunder. ... F Justice Winslow left the game with a leg injury in the third quarter.
Thunder: Giddey returned after missing two games due to illness. ... F/C Jeremiah Robinson-Earl sat out with a sprained right ankle. ... Oklahoma City improved to 9-7 at home this season. ... Jalen Williams scored 15 points and Lu Dort added 14 for the Thunder.
UP NEXT
Trail Blazers: Visit the Denver Nuggets on Friday.
Thunder: Host the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday.
___
Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: twitter.com/CliffBruntAP
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
