McCollum scores 20 as Trail Blazers beat Hawks 110-89
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – CJ McCollum had 20 points and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Atlanta Hawks 110-89 on Friday night.
Damian Lillard added 14 points before sitting for the fourth quarter and the Blazers snapped a three-game losing streak to the Hawks at the Moda Center. Seven of Portland’s players were in double figures.
Dennis Schroder had 14 points to lead the Hawks. They trailed by 25 points in fourth quarter en route to their third loss in four games.
It was not known whether Lillard would play against the Hawks because of a calf injury, but he started. Lillard was averaging just over 25 points heading into the game.
Lillard missed four games with a sore right hamstring before playing 33 minutes and scoring 25 points in a 127-110 loss at Cleveland on Tuesday night.
The Blazers went on a 12-2 run to take a 20-12 lead. Portland led by as many as 12 points in the opening half, but Atlanta got back within 45-43 on Dennis Schroder’s layup.
After a brief dustup where words were exchanged between Jusuf Nurkic and Taurean Prince, the Blazers went on to a 52-46 lead at halftime.
Prince had a 3-pointer in the first half to extend his streak to 20 straight games with a 3.
Al-Farouq Aminu’s driving layup gave the Blazers an 80-63 lead late in the third quarter. McCollum’s 3-pointer and Pat Connaughton’s layup pushed Portland’s lead to 91-68 early in the fourth.
Blazers coach Terry Stotts sent his all of his starters to the bench by the halfway point of the final period. Aminu also finished with 14 points.
Atlanta, in the midst of a five-game trip, fell 104-103 in Phoenix on Tuesday night.
TIP INS
Hawks: Atlanta rookie Tyler Dorsey played for Oregon. … The Hawks recalled forward DeAndre Bembry from the Erie Bay Hawks. He was expected to head to Atlanta for evaluation and treatment for a left groin strain.
Trail Blazers: Portland fell in the first game against the Hawks this season, 104-89 in Atlanta last Saturday. … The Blazers improved to 9-10 at home. … Evan Turner reached double figures for the third straight game and 16th game overall. … Portland made 13 of 30 3-point attempts.
UP NEXT
Hawks: At Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.
Trail Blazers: Host San Antonio on Sunday night.
