National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Portland 96, Phoenix 93
When: 10:00 PM ET, Saturday, December 22, 2012
Where: Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon
Officials: #34 Kevin Cutler, #10 Ron Garretson, #20 Leroy Richardson
Attendance: 19746


Trail Blazers 96, Suns 93: Damian Lillard scored a game-high 25 points and added seven assists as host Portland completed a six-game homestand with its fifth straight win.

J.J. Hickson contributed 19 points and 15 rebounds, LaMarcus Aldridge chipped in 17 and nine and Nicolas Batum recorded 13, nine and eight assists for the Trail Blazers, who have won seven straight home meetings with the Suns.

Marcin Gortat had 18 points and nine boards while Shannon Brown added 15 points for Phoenix, which had its four-game winning streak snapped.

The Suns led by two points after the opening quarter and pushed the advantage to nine at halftime. An 8-0 run in the third after Portland got within two gave Phoenix a double-digit lead, but the Trail Blazers closed the quarter with a 12-2 burst to forge a 75-75 tie.

Portland took a one-point lead on a driving layup by Ronnie Price with 6:28 remaining in the fourth and increased it to 92-85 on back-to-back 3-pointers by Sasha Pavlovic and Lillard. A layup by Jared Dudley with 38.9 seconds left got the Suns within three, but Goran Dragic missed a 3-pointer with less than a second to go, sealing the win for Portland.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Hickson scored 13 of Portland's 23 first-quarter points. ... Aldridge returned from a one-game absence due to an ankle injury. ... Phoenix has not won five straight games since Jan. 12-21, 2011.

Top Game Performances
 
Phoenix   Portland
Marcin Gortat 18 Scoring Damian Lillard 25
Jared Dudley 10 Assists Nicolas Batum 8
Marcin Gortat 9 Rebounds J.J. Hickson 15
Jermaine O'Neal 5 Free Throws Made Damian Lillard 9
Shannon Brown 4 Steals Nicolas Batum 2
Markieff Morris 1 Blocks LaMarcus Aldridge 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Phoenix 93 44.9 5-19 8-11 26 32 1 12 11
Portland 96 47.8 7-20 23-28 21 45 4 5 22
Upcoming Games
  • Portland will play their next game on the road against Sacramento. The Trail Blazers have a W/L % of .583 after a win and .462 after a loss.
  • Phoenix will play their next game at home against L.A. Clippers. The Suns have a W/L % of .417 after a win and .400 after a loss.