The game was full of thrilling plays, and the box score was full of gaudy numbers after the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Cavaliers, 119-116, on Tuesday night at The Q.
Damian Lillard hit a 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left as the Blazers improved to a league-best 22-4 record, 12-2 on the road. Kyrie Irving missed a long 3-pointer at the buzzer as the Cavs slipped to 9-15, losing at home for the first time in five games.
Lillard, the reigning rookie of the year, finished with a season-high 36 points, including eight 3-pointers, and a season-high 10 assists. He also tied his career high with eight rebounds. LaMarcus Aldridge, the reigning Western Conference player of the week, added 26 points and 15 rebounds. Irving, the reigning Eastern Conference player of the week, and Dion Waiters, reiterating before the game that he has not asked to be traded, each had 25 for the Cavs, and Irving added 10 assists.
Portland, which came into the game as the second-best 3-point shooting team in the league with a 41.2 percent average, actually shot 45.5 percent from 3-point range on Tuesday (15-of-33).
But the only numbers that concerned Cavs coach Mike Brown were rebounds. Portland hammered Cleveland on the boards, 56-44, including 18 offensive rebounds and a remarkable 35 second-chance points, meaning the Blazers basically scored off every offensive board.
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