National Basketball Association
Portland 112, Orlando 103
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 23, 2017
Where: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Officials: #59 Gary Zielinski, #34 Kevin Cutler, #55 Bill Kennedy
Attendance: 17487

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Damian Lillard believes this win was more than just another win in a long NBA season for the Portland Trail Blazers.

This win was pivotal, expected to spark a turnaround that puts the Blazers back in the playoff hunt after an often-painful season.

Lillard scored 33 points, including 17 in a fourth-quarter comeback, to lead the Trail Blazers to a 112-103 victory over the Orlando Magic on Thursday night at the Amway Center.

"You can bounce a lot of things off of one win like that, coming from behind to win on the road. We had to close out a close game, which we haven't done much this season," Lillard said. "You build off that. It felt good, real good. There's nothing better than a win like this."

The Blazers (24-33) snapped a three-game losing streak after trailing for most of the game, erasing the Magic's 11-point, fourth-quarter lead to win in impressive fashion.

The Blazers, whose season has been filled with disappointment, believe their post-All-Star break could become a real comeback story.

"We're a playoff team. We feel like a playoff team," Lillard said. "The way we played tonight, responding to a challenge like this, it builds confidence and makes you feel good about where we're going."

Lillard scored more than 30 points for the 16th time this season. His fourth quarter looked effortless when he hit three of his five 3-point attempts.

"When you get it going like that, it feels like you can just will your team to victory," he said. "We got one that we needed, and now we move on to the next one."

Guard CJ McCollum scored 22 points and added six assists for the Blazers. Maurice Harkless, who played three seasons with Orlando, had 12 points, including nine in the decisive fourth quarter.

Shabazz Napier had 10 points. Center Jusuf Nurkic, acquired last week from Denver, had 12 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.

Nikola Vucevic led the Magic with 25 points and nine rebounds. Evan Fournier had 20 points and five rebounds. Terrence Ross, playing his first game for the Magic, had 13 points but made only four of 17 shots. Mario Hezonja scored 10 points, but all in the first half.

The Magic lost for the sixth time in the last seven games. After leading through much of the game, they looked helpless when Lillard took charge down the stretch.

"We just didn't do a good job of closing out this game," Vucevic said. "Defensively, we let them get what they wanted. We just made a lot of bad decisions to finish the game and pretty much gave it away."

The Blazers grabbed a 96-95 lead -- their first lead since early in the first quarter -- when Lillard hit a 3-pointer with 5:14 remaining. He hit a jumper for the 98-96 lead they never lost.

"It was just a good way to start the last part of the season," Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. "Damian has done that often in his career and when he gets it rolling like that, it's hard to stop. I'm not sure if that's the norm, but it's not surprising anymore."

The Blazers made a 7-0 run -- including a 3-pointer from Napier -- early in the fourth quarter to close within 91-87.

The Blazers made an 11-0 run midway in the third period and cut the deficit to 71-68. Magic reserve D.J. Augustin hit a 3-pointer just before the third period ended for an 85-77 lead. Lillard scored nine points in the third but the Magic never relinquished the lead.

The Magic led, 55-46, at intermission, riding 13 points from Vucevic and 11 from Fournier. Hezonja hit all four of his shots in the first half, including a pair of 3-pointers.

The Blazers got 14 points from McCollum in the first half, and they outshot the Magic, 48.6 percent to 38.8 percent, but they hurt themselves with 15 turnovers before intermission.

The Magic led by as many as 11 points in the first half, scoring 20 points off Portland turnovers.

NOTES: F Terrence Ross made his Magic debut Thursday, starting at small forward. Ross came to Orlando last week from Toronto in the trade for Serge Ibaka. The trade prompted a change of positions for Aaron Gordon, who went from small forward to power forward. "This was the first step in a long journey," Ross said. ... The Blazers still believe they have a legitimate shot at the playoffs, based on their remaining schedule. Of their final 25 games, only 10 are against teams with a winning record. "We're fortunate to still be in a position to make a run at the playoffs. I'm excited about the opportunity," said G Damian Lillard. ... Magic C Nikola Vucevic scoffed at the suggestion the Magic should begin looking toward positioning for the NBA Draft Lottery, where losing games now can improve the chances of earning a higher draft choice. "Tanking and all that, I think, is just crap," Vucevic said. "Teams that do that, it just doesn't work out always in a good way." ... The Magic beat the Blazers earlier this season in Portland by six points. ... The Magic played without PG C.J. Watson (strained Achilles), who started their last game before the All-Star break but didn't play in the second half.
Top Game Performances
 
Portland   Orlando
Damian Lillard 33 Scoring Nikola Vucevic 25
C.J. McCollum 6 Assists Jeff Green 4
Jusuf Nurkic 12 Rebounds Aaron Gordon 9
C.J. McCollum 7 Free Throws Made Nikola Vucevic 8
Jusuf Nurkic 3 Steals Terrence Ross 3
Maurice Harkless 3 Blocks Aaron Gordon 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Portland 112 50.6 9-18 21-27 20 45 7 8 20
Orlando 103 39.5 7-22 28-39 18 40 4 8 14
Upcoming Games
  • Orlando will play their next game at home against Atlanta. The Magic have a W/L % of .273 after a win and .405 after a loss.
  • Portland will play their next game on the road against Toronto. The Trail Blazers have a W/L % of .348 after a win and .471 after a loss.