----- The Portland Trail Blazers improve to 10-3 on the season with their fourth-straight win 100-94 over the Boston Celtics Sunday night at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
The Celtics made the Blazers work for this win. The game wasn't decided until Al-Farouq Aminu connected on a three-pointer with 1:00 remaining to push the Blazers lead to six points at 100-94 and that is where the game would end. Aminu connected on two critical threes late in the fourth to keep his team in front when the Celtics were threatening. The Blazers finished their home stand at 5-1 and improved their record to 10-3 on the season.
It looked like the Trail Blazers were going to turn Sunday night's game into a blowout. The Blazers led by as much as 21 points in the first half on their way to a 54-37 halftime lead. Jusuf Nurkic had 14 points and 10 boards at the half and the Blazers connected on eight three-pointers, but Boston didn't lie down.
The Celtics nailed seven of their 12 second half threes in the third period as they started their comeback. Jayson Tatum scored 12 of his team-high 27 points in the third. Portland led by 13 points at 83-70 entering the fourth quarter, but the Celtics responded with a 16-3 run to tie the game at 86-86 with 7:27 to play in the game. The Blazers closed the game on a 14-8 run to get the 100-94 win moving their record to an impressive 10-3.
Jusuf Nurkic recorded his sixth double-double of the season finishing with 18 points and 17 rebounds. Nurkic was aggressive all night on the offensive glass including a critical rebound and put back to push the Blazers lead to four points at 92-88.
Portland (10-3) got 19 and 12 assists from Damian Lillard and 11 points from Aminu. The Blazers once again dominated the paint with a big edge in rebounding (55-42) and points in the paint (42-26).
The Blazers will now head out on a six-game road trip that begins Wednesday night in Los Angeles against the Lakers. The Blazers are 3-1 on the road this season and 7-2 at Moda Center.
Up Next- The Trail Blazers will play at the LA Lakers on Wednesday night at Staples Center. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 PM.
Chad's Take- Take a moment to appreciate how the Blazers have started the season. 10-3 is legit.