Suns’ second-half surge comes up short after Lillard’s monster first half for Blazers
Mar 12, 2017, 9:30 PM
Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) draws the foul from Phoenix Suns forward Marquese Chriss during the second quarter of an NBA basketball game Sunday, March 12, 2017, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
(AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
PHOENIX — Phoenix Suns rookie small forward Derrick Jones Jr. now knows what time it is.
Jones guarded Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard in the first half using fullcourt pressure, and Lillard responded Sunday by dropping 28 of his 39 points before the break.
Despite a run from the Suns in the second half, Lillard’s explosion in the first 24 minutes provided enough insurance for Portland in Phoenix’s 110-101 loss.
“Dame dominated the first half,” Suns head coach Earl Watson said. “It wasn’t even close.”
Watson spoke before the game about Jones’ performance in his first career start against the Mavericks a night prior, when he applied the same pressure to Dallas rookie Yogi Ferrell. But Lillard is on a different level.
“I thought he did great in the first part,” Watson said of Jones’ defense on Lillard. “Derrick came out and Dame kind of caught his rhythm and once Dame catches a rhythm, it’s tough to stop.
“Dame is unique and once he gets going, his momentum is too great, you have to try to find a way to disrupt it.”
It took only 14 shots for Lillard to get his 28 points and it never looked particularly difficult for him, a testament to his scoring prowess. Eric Bledsoe picked up Lillard defensively in the second half.
A big third quarter surge from Phoenix kept the game close. The Suns outscored Portland 29-16, with 17 of those points coming from Bledsoe and Devin Booker.
That led to a back-and-forth fourth, but Portland’s offensive execution from the first half eventually returned. C.J. McCollum had 12 of his 26 points and two of his four assists in the quarter, all while covering Booker, who played the entire second half and finished with 28.
The Suns’ second unit played a role in keeping the deficit manageable for Booker and Bledsoe after their hard work in the third.
Alex Len (hip) was still out and Tyson Chandler (personal reasons) was not with the team, leaving the Suns with only two players to play center in Marquese Chriss and Alan Williams.
Foul trouble, as it has been all season for the two, was an issue. Both ended the first half with three apiece and Chriss picked up his fourth with 9:52 left in the third quarter, leaving Williams to deal with 7-foot, 280-pound Portland center Jusuf Nurkic, who was already a load to handle for Chriss.
Like he has all season, however, Williams defied logic surrounding concerns of his size, scoring six points, grabbing seven rebounds and avoiding picking up his fourth foul in the 10-minute run. Nurkic picked up his fourth foul in the quarter, leaving stretch-five Meyers Leonard in the game and neutralizing the big advantage for Portland down low.
Williams ended the night with 12 points and 10 rebounds, extending his career-long double-digit scoring streak to 10 straight games and recording his 10th double-double of the season.
Tyler Ulis, the other end of the Suns’ young dynamic duo off the bench, also had a big second half.
After coming back down to the earth in the last three games since his game-winner against Boston, Ulis got his groove back. He finished with 10 points and six assists.
The Suns have two days off on the schedule before taking on the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday in Phoenix.
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