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 "A couple of weeks ago, he was in the D-league," Rockets guard
James Harden said. "Now, he saved our season."
Harden collected 37 points, nine rebounds and six assists for the
Rockets, who won for the first time after losing the first two games
of the first-round playoff series.
Guard Damian Lillard scored 30 points with six rebounds and six
assists for the Trail Blazers, who play host to Game 4 on Sunday
night. Forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who scored 46 and 43 points in the
first two games of the series, had 19 of his 23 points after
intermission.
Daniels' game-winning basket came after a broken play in which
Harden had the ball knocked from him. After a scramble, Houston
guard Jeremy Lin wound up with the ball. He drove toward the basket,
spotted Daniels spotted up behind the 3-point line and passed him
the ball. Daniels buried the shot for a 119-116 lead.
After a timeout, Portland got the ball to forward Nicolas Batum,
whose 3-point shot bounced off the rim. Harden was fouled and made a
pair of foul shots with 1.1 seconds left to provide the final
margin.
"We had confidence going into the game," said Harden, who was
13-for-35 from the field, including 3 for 11 from 3-point range. "We
shouldn't have been down 0-2 in the series. We knew it would be a
hostile environment tonight. (The Blazers) made a couple of runs,
but we held our composure and had enough to win at the end."
Daniels had played in only five regular-season games for Houston and
hadn't seen action in either the previous two games of the series.
"It's a dream come true," said Daniels, who scored nine points while
making 3 of 6 shots, all from beyond the arc. "Three or four weeks
ago, I was looking at these guys on TV. Now they're teammates."
The former Virginia Commonwealth standout said he'd made "a couple
of game-winners in high school. Not in college, but I have one now
in the NBA."
"This is a little different than high school," Harden said.
"He raised up on that last one like he'd been there before," Lillard
said of Daniels' game-winning shot. "But you live with him shooting
that shot over James Harden."
Houston coach Kevin McHale said he decided to use Daniels for a
couple of reasons.
"He's not afraid to shoot it," McHale said. "He knows he can shoot
it. He's a tough kid. He's going to get his nose dirty, and we
needed to get some nose-dirty plays."
Lillard scored 16 first-half points, including a free throw with .1
of a second left, to send Portland into the third quarter with a
one-point lead. Houston center Dwight Howard, who finished with 24
points and 14 rebounds, scored 12 points and Harden and Houston
guard Patrick Beverley 11 apiece in the first half, though the
latter pair went scoreless in the second period.
With center Omer Asik fronting Aldridge and denying him the ball,
the Blazers' All-Star managed only four points on 2-for-8 shooting
in the half.
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The Rockets extended the lead to 73-67 midway through the third
quarter and settled for an 81-78 advantage heading into the final
period.
Houston upped the margin to 90-80 on a Harden 3-pointer with 10:17
remaining. It was 96-85 with eight minutes to play when Portland
guard Mo Williams buried a 3 and was fouled by Houston forward
Chandler Parsons. Williams converted the free throw for a four-point
play to draw the Blazers to within 96-89. Williams followed with a
22-footer to cut the margin to 96-91 with 7:11 to go.
The Rockets went back on top 102-93, but Aldridge converted a
three-point play to make it 102-96 with 5:17 remaining. Moments
later, Lillard sank a scoop shot and was fouled, finishing another
three-point play to draw the Blazers to within 103-101 with 4:05
left.
Howard — fouled intentionally — answered with a pair at the line
to make it 105-101. Batum drove for a basket with 2:55 left to cut
the lead to 105-103. Fouled again, Howard made one of two, and it
was 106-103.
Williams answered with two free throws to trim Houston's edge to
106-105, and a Lillard driving layup gave Portland the lead at
107-106 with 1:59 remaining. Houston regained the lead at 108-107 on
two Harden free throws with 1:41 to play, and he made two more to
push the Rockets in front 110-107.
Moments later, Houston blew a golden opportunity when Lin missed a
breakaway layup. Batum sank a 3 at the other end to tie it at
110-110 with 34 seconds to go. After a Harden miss, the Blazers
rebounded and worked it to Lillard, who missed a step-back 3. The
Rockets rebounded, calling timeout with 3.3 seconds left.
Harden's desperation attempt from midcourt was off, and it was on to
overtime.
NOTES: Houston G James Harden has made 27 of 82 shots from the field
in the series. ...the Rockets were 12 for 31 from 3-point range
after going 11 for 51 from beyond the arc in the first two games.
... The road team has won all three games in the series, with two of
the games going to overtime. ... Portland G Damian Lillard is the
first Blazer with 30 points, six rebounds and six assists in a
playoff game since G Terry Porter in 1992.
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