Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian LillardMark J. Terrill/The Associated Press
Damian Lillard dished out more of the same punishment to the Los Angeles Lakers that he did the last time he faced them. They still had no answer for his fourth-quarter theatrics.
Lillard scored 17 of his 34 points in the final 8:16, leading the Portland Trail Blazers to a 106-94 victory Sunday night and making the Northwest Division leaders the first NBA team to 30 wins.
"It's a great accomplishment to have 30 wins in 38 games," Lillard said. "We've just got to keep the same mentality that we've had and always remember that we are an elite team. And we've got to keep proving that every night and stay locked in."
Four other players scored in double figures for the Blazers, who have won 27 of their last 32 games and are a season-best 22 over .500. LaMarcus Aldridge had 15 points and nine rebounds, Wesley Matthews had 16 points and Nicolas Batum added 11. Chris Kaman had 12 rebounds and nine points in his fourth start of the season and second against his former team.
Lillard averaged 25 points over his previous four games against the Lakers. He scored 16 of his 39 points in the final 5:11 when the Blazers beat them 98-84 at Portland last Monday, and also had a 38-point effort against the Lakers on April 10, 2013.
"It was pretty much the same things I saw the last game against them," Lakers coach Byron Scott said. "We played them really tough, and then Damien kind of takes over. We tried to pressure him, we tried to trap him at times, but he just made some great shots. He's just a heck of a player."
Meyers Leonard put Portland ahead to stay with a 3-pointer, triggering a 17-3 run that helped the Trail Blazers open up an 89-76 lead with 6:50 to play. Lillard made a 3-pointer, a driving layup and a three-point play during a 1:54 span before Aldridge capped the rally with a 20-footer.
"We started to run some sets that I was able to get loose on," Lillard said. "Our bigs did a great job in transitioning and in the halfcourt game and setting solid screens. So I was just able to get a big man in front of me and make plays, and the shots were falling."
The 6-foot-3 Lillard scored Portland's final eight points, including a soaring slam dunk between the 6-10 duo of Jordan Hill and Ed Davis and turned it into a three-point play after Hill fouled him.
"At that point in the game, I knew it was getting really physical. They had cut the lead down, so I knew I had to go strong and I did," Lillard said. "There was a perfect amount of space, and (Hill) jumped late. So I wouldn't even say I completely jumped over him So I did. I was surprised that he didn't just let me get the two points, instead of letting it be an and-one."
The Lakers got to 97-90 on 3-pointers by Wayne Ellington and Wesley Johnson against a defence that entered Sunday first in the NBA in defending the 3-point shot.
Kobe Bryant was rested by Lakers coach Byron Scott for the sixth time in 11 games and second game in a row. The NBA's third-leading career scorer, playing in his 19th season at age 36, played in only six games last season due to a torn Achilles and a fracture in his left knee.
Wesley Johnson returned to the Lakers' lineup and scored 17 points after missing three games because of a strained hip flexor. Ronnie Price had a career-high 12 assists, one of which set up a driving dunk by Tarik Black that pulled the Lakers into a 69-all tie late in the third quarter.
GRIZZLIES 122, SUNS 110
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Marc Gasol scored the first seven points in the second overtime, Zach Randolph had 27 points and 17 rebounds and the Memphis Grizzlies outlasted the Phoenix Suns 122-110 on Sunday night.
Gasol finished with 12 points to help Memphis snap a two-game losing streak. Mike Conley added 25 points and eight assists and Courtney Lee had 18 points.
Isaiah Thomas led Phoenix with 20 points, but had a costly turnover trying to get the ball into the front court with the Suns leading late in the first overtime.
Markieff Morris added 17 points, Alex Len had 14 points and 13 rebounds, and P.J. Tucker, Eric Bledsoe and Marcus Morris had 11 points apiece.
Tucker's layup tied it 101 with 5.9 left in regulation. The Grizzlies begged for basket interference, saying Bledsoe pulled the net as the ball was bouncing on the rim.
Bledsoe's 3-pointer with 33.3 seconds left in the first overtime gave the Suns a 108-106 lead. The Suns stopped the Grizzlies on the next possession, but Thomas gave away the ball and Lee – fouled by Dragic – made two free throws with 16.2 left. Bledsoe then missed at the buzzer, forcing the second extra period.
The Suns trailed by 16 in the second half and 14 early in the fourth quarter.
KINGS 103, CAVALIERS 84
SACRAMENTO – DeMarcus Cousins had 26 points and 13 rebounds and Sacramento handed Cleveland its seventh loss in eight games with LeBron James out with a strained back and sore left knee.
Rudy Gay added 23 points for Sacramento. Darren Collison had 16, and Carl Landry 11.
Kevin Love led the Cavaliers with 25 points and 10 rebounds, and Kyrie Irving scored 14 of his 21 points in the first quarter and had seven assists. Timofey Mozgov, acquired from Denver last week, had 14 points and 12 rebounds. JR Smith struggled after scoring 27 points in his second game since joining Cleveland in a trade with New York. He had four points on 2-of-10 shooting in 30 minutes.
Cleveland is 1-8 in its last nine games to drop to 19-19.
HAWKS 120, WIZARDS 89
ATLANTA – Kyle Korver scored 19 points and DeMarre Carroll had 16 to help Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta beat Washington for its eighth straight victory.
Korver was 5 for 7 from 3-point range, improving his NBA-leading percentage to 50.2. His smoothest move, however, was a behind-the-back pass to Carroll for a layup and a 64-54 lead in the third.
Improving to 16-3 at home and 29-8 overall, the Hawks got 15 points from Al Horford and 11 each from Paul Millsap, Jeff Teague and Mike Scott. Atlanta has won 13 of 14 and 22 of 24.
John Wall had 15 points for Washington and Nene added 14. The Wizards were outscored 33-12 in the fourth quarter. They won their previous three games.
HEAT 104, CLIPPERS 90
LOS ANGELES – Chris Bosh scored 34 points, Hassan Whiteside had career highs of 23 points and 16 rebounds off the bench and Miami beat Los Angeles to end a three-game road skid.
Whiteside was 10 of 13 from the field and 3 of 4 from the line in 28 minutes. Dwyane Wade added 17 points and 10 assists.
Blake Griffin scored 26 points and Chris Paul had 23 points and nine assists for the Clippers. They had won two straight and six of their previous eight.