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 The Blazers tied a franchise record with 21 3-pointers in a
134-104 dismantling of the Charlotte Bobcats.
Guards Wesley Matthews and Damian Lillard combined for 49 points in
the dismantling of the Bobcats defense.
Matthews (25 points) and Lillard (24 points) were the catalysts for
the Blazers (26-7), who were 21 for 33 from beyond the arc,
including 11 for 13 in the first quarter.
The two Portland guards combined to make 17 of 24 shots from the
field and 11 for 12 on 3-point attempts. The Blazers' third guard,
Mo Williams, came off the bench for 15 points and 10 assists.
"I'm not going to lie to you," said Matthews, who was 8 for 11 from
the field and 5 for 6 from 3-point range. "I felt on when I woke up
from my nap today."
Lillard was perfect (6 for 6) on attempts from beyond the arc for
the Blazers, who entered the game ranked No. 1 in the NBA in 3-point
percentage at .396.
"It was a lot of fun, with shots falling, but we've been doing it
all year," said Lillard, who was 9 for 13 from the field. "Everybody
has been willing to make that extra pass. The passes were on target
tonight. We have a lot of good shooters. If we get in a good enough
rhythm, when we get good looks and the ball is moving how it did,
that's the kind of night it can be."
Portland came within two of matching the NBA record for 3-point
makes of 23 co-held by Orlando (2005) and Houston (2013). The
Blazers are the first team to have two games with 20 or more treys
in a season.
"Making shots is contagious," Matthews said. "Our crowd gets into
it. Our crowd is almost willing the ball in for us, before we even
shoot it. When that ball is flying around the perimeter like that,
it's almost like it's expected you're going to make the shot."
Guard Chris Douglas-Roberts came off the bench to lead Charlotte
(14-20) with 20 points, while center Al Jefferson added 19.
"We came out sluggish," Douglas-Roberts said. Portland "is too good
to come out sluggish. We weren't ready to play. They hit (more than)
20 3's, and that was the game."
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The Blazers were lights out in the first half, especially
from long range, in running up a 70-49 halftime lead. They shot
.614 from the field and were 12 for 17 (.706) on 3-point
attempts. With Lillard — 6 for 6 from the field and 4 for 4 on
treys for 16 points — leading the way, the Blazers led by as
many as 27 points in the half.
Portland made its first two 3-point tries of the third quarter
and built the margin to 89-61 midway through the quarter. By
that time, Lillard had 24 points on 9-for-11 shooting.
Charlotte finally got things going, using an 11-0 run to get to
within 89-72. Matthews then hit a 3-pointer to start a 7-0
Portland spurt that ended the Bobcat hopes for a miracle.
Forward LaMarcus Aldridge's jumper at the buzzer allowed the
Blazers to take a 100-77 lead into the fourth quarter.
Portland made 11 of its first 13 shots from the field en route
to a 28-13 lead seven minutes into the game. The Blazers boosted
the advantage to 33-13 before settling for a 39-21 edge after
one quarter. The Blazers were 7 for 8 from 3-point range in the
quarter and made 11 of their first 13 3-point attempts to jack
their lead to 55-31 with 7:30 left in the second quarter.
The margin kept building as the Blazers kept scoring — 64-37
with three minutes yet to play before halftime.
NOTES: Portland had made 21 3-pointers in a 130-98 rout of Utah
on Dec. 9. ... Lillard is the second player in Portland history
to make at least six 3's without a miss. Terry Porter holds the
record with a 7-for-7 performance against Golden State in 1992.
... Portland matched its season-high score for the first quarter
(39 points) and reached a season high for any half (70 in the
first half). ... The Blazers have the best record in the Western
Conference and lead the NBA in victories. ... It was the
second-highest scoring total of the season for Portland, which
beat Philadelphia 139-105 on Dec. 14. ... The Blazers entered
the game as the only team to have used the same starting five
(Nicolas Batum, LaMarcus Aldridge, Robin Lopez, Damian Lillard
and Wesley Matthews) all season. "That's been very important to
our success," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "We've been very
fortunate. We haven't had to talk about injuries at all."
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