Greetings from North Portland. With a few days off before the Trail Blazers hit the road for yet another three-game road trip, your humble podcast crew of Brooke Olzendam, she of Trail Blazers TV, and I, Casey Holdahl of Trailblazers.com, fired up the mobile studio to record the 102nd edition of The Blazers Balcony, which you can listen/subscribe to below…
Should note here that we recorded before the report that Robert Williams III will need to undergo surgery on his right knee, so we’re a bit more jovial than we would have been had we known. Either way, what bummer, Rob Will is a heck of a player and an even better dude.
The Portland Trail Blazers officially sit atop the In-Season Tournament standings.
Portland once again fought back from a double-digit deficit, this time in the fourth quarter, to force overtime before going on to best the Memphis Grizzlies 115-113 in front of a crowd of 18,592 Friday night at Moda Center in the first game of West Group A play.
“It was just a hell of a game,” said Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups. “Proud of us we just stayed together, man. We stayed together. We was one was down a lot, a lot went against us… The whole time and kept scrapping.”
The Trail Blazers have now won three-straight, are 3-3 overall and 1-1 at Moda Center this season. Portland is now 1-0 in Group A of the In-Season Tournament win the win with games versus the Jazz, Lakers and Suns still left to play before the knockout round.
“It feels good to get the dub,” said Shaedon Sharpe, who played Friday’s game despite flu-like symptoms. “I feel like everybody contributed, everybody did their job and everyone competed. I think we did good.”
After a tight first quarter, the Grizzlies went on an 18-2 run to start the second quarter and take their largest lead of the night at 48-37. However, after scoring just four points in the first seven minutes of the quarter, Portland closed the half on a 17-5 run of their own to go into the intermission with a 54-53 lead.
“We just never give up,” said Sharpe. “We stay the course, everybody competes hard and we just stay focused.”
Neither team managed to get much separation in the third, though with the Grizzlies going up 10 with 3:21 to play in the fourth, it seemed as if the Trail Blazers might have to wait another game for both their first home victory and their first In-Season Tournament win.
But Portland would outscore Memphis 12-2 in the final three minutes, with Shaedon Sharpe netting two free throws with 8.1 seconds to play, to tie the game at 102-102. Sharpe would then ensure the game would go to overtime by blocking what otherwise looked like a wide-open corner three from Luke Kennard as time expired in regulation.
“I won’t lie, I don’t even know how I blocked him because I done lost him,” said Sharpe. “And then I see the ball go to him and I recovered and I just jumped and blocked it… I just seen (the ball) and I reacted.”
Overtime got off to a slow start offensive for both teams, with neither team scoring in the first two minutes of extra time. Deandre Ayton finally broke the seal with a baby hook with three minutes to play, which Sharpe followed up with a layup too take a four-point advantage. The Grizzlies scored the next four to tie the game at 106-106 with 1:29 to play in overtime.
Portland was clinging to a one-point lead after two Desmond Bane free throws, but Jerami Grant got a wide-open look from three to go down with 39 seconds to play to push the lead to two possessi
“I was just happy it went in,” said Grant. “I had a few in-and-outs but it’s just part of the game. It was a big shot for us, put us up four, so big shot.”
A few stops and three made free throws later, the Blazers would come away with a two-point overtime victory, securing their first home win of the 2023-24 season and their first In-Season Tournament win in their first try.
Malcolm Brogdon, who got his first start as a Trail Blazer with Scoot Henderson (right ankle) sitting out, finished with 24 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and three steals in 44 minutes.
Grant posted 26 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a block in 43 minutes. Sharpe finished with 22 points, five rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal in 46 minutes. And Deandre Ayton posted his third-straight double-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds, three steals, two assists and a block in 36 minutes.
Desmond Bane led all scorers with 33 points, with Jaren Jackson Jr. posting a double-double of 30 points, 10 rebounds.
Next up, the Trail Blazers will host the Grizzlies on Sunday in the second-game of a two-game series. That game, however, does not count toward the In-Season Tournament standings. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m
