Morris Does It Again, Celtics Beat Trail Blazers, 105-100, In Final Minute
After a last second win on Tuesday night, Marcus Morris and the Boston Celtics pulled out a, 105-100, win over the red-hot Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night at the…
After a last second win on Tuesday night, Marcus Morris and the Boston Celtics pulled out a, 105-100, win over the red-hot Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night at the Moda Center in Oregon.
Morris nailed the game-winner on Tuesday night against the OKC Thunder and he essentially nailed the game-winner in this one, as he led all scorers with 30 points on 5-of-6 from three-point land.
Early Friday afternoon, it was announced that All-Star guard Kyrie Irving would be undergoing a "minimally invasive procedure" on his ailing left knee this Saturday. And "there will be further information provided following the procedure," according to the Celtics.
Coming into the first of a four-game road trip, the Celtics were 8-4, and 3-2 on the road since the All-Star break in mid-February.
And the Trail Blazers' 13-game winning streak was snapped by the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night, following the C’s epic, 100-99, win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the closing seconds of the game.
In the first quarter, both teams played well on both sides of the ball but it was the Trail Blazers who were able to take 26-23 lead into the second.
The Blazers came out in the second quarter and dropped another 26 points, to take a 52-47 lead into halftime after shooting 47.8 percent from the field.
After going 3-for-4 from three in the first, the C’s finished the first half 6-for-10 from three, while shooting 41.5 percent from the field.
Portland jumped out to an 11-point lead just five minutes into the third following a 12-6 run to start the second-half.
But despite scoring their lowest amount of points in a quarter for the night, the C’s only trailed the Blazers 77-67 heading into the final frame.
Who would’ve thought that it’d take until the opening minute of the fourth quarter for Jayson Tatum to knock down his first field goal of the game?
But once he got going, it was a wrap. Especially since the Blazers came out flat to start the fourth, while the C’s came out with their highest level of energy seen throughout the entire game.
Tatum and Shane Larkin started to take over the fourth, combining for 13 points in 2:50 to bring the C’s within three.
The Celtics kept grinding throughout the fourth and they would eventually regain the lead for the first time since the opening minutes of the game after a Morris three with 6:30 on the clock.
Over the next three minutes, the Celtics and Blazers would go back and forth, leading to a 91-91 tie with less than four minutes to play.
Everything really started to change for the Celtics after Damian Lillard knocked down a three to break the, 91-91, tie at the 3:20 mark.
But leave it to Terry Rozier III to respond with a three of his own, to tie things back up at 94 with 3:03 to play.
Here’s the point where the Celtics elevated their intensity and really began to enforce their grit down the final stretch of the game, helping to seal the deal on an explosive 38-point quarter.
The Celtics held a two-point lead when Al Horford magically appeared and made one helluva play on the ball.
The block, followed by a Lillard turnover, turned into a pair of made freebies from Rozier. But of course Lillard made up for his mistake with a made basket to bring it to 96-96 with 1:45 remaining.
Tatum and the Celtics came back down the court to score another basket, before getting the ball back off a missed Portland shot.
The Blazers’ missed basket ended up leading to another dagger of a three-pointer from Morris, giving the C’s a 101-96 lead, with 54.8 seconds remaining.
Tatum scored the final two points of his 10 in the fourth, with 32.7 seconds remaining, as the C’s took a 103-98 lead and never looked back.
After another Portland basket, a pair of Rozier-made free throws, and Horford's rebound, the Celtics were in the clear to capture a 105-100 win.
With Kyrie Irving and Jaylen Brown still sidelined, Shane Larkin and Greg Monroe played some big minutes off the bench.
Monroe finished the game with a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double in 20 minutes. And Larkin finished with nine points (3-7 FG), four rebounds and seven assists through 34 minutes, after his "minutes restriction" was lifted.
Aron Baynes was even sniffing a double-double with nine points, nine rebounds, and three assists.
After having a tough first three quarters, Tatum finished the game with 13 points (4-11 FG), six rebounds and four assists. Even though Rozier finished the game with 16 points, he still shot a concerning 28.5 percent from the field.
Lillard and CJ McCollum each dropped 26 points for Portland, who shot 44 percent from the field. And coming into the game the Blazers ranked third in the NBA in three-point shooting percentage at 38 percent-per-game but they finished with a ratchet 24.2 percent (8-33 3PT).
The Celtics finished the game shooting 45.5 percent from the field and an impressive 61.1 percent from three (11-18 3PT).
UP NEXT: The Celtics (49-23) will play the first of a back-to-back and the second of a four-game road trip on Sunday night against the Sacramento Kings (24-49). Catch the call of Sunday's game with Sean Grande and Cedric Maxwell, live on 98.5 The Sports Hub. Pre-game coverage begins at 5:30 p.m., with tip-off set for 6:00 p.m.
-- By John 'The Dude' Hardiman, 985TheSportsHub.com
John Hardiman is a Digital Producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for John? Hit him up on Twitter @HardiDude or e-mail him at john.hardiman@bbgi.com.
