The Portland Trail Blazers faced the Sacramento Kings Friday night with ten (10) players on the injured list. And they lost an eleventh at halftime. Shaedon Sharpe led his team with 27 points on 10-20 shooting, but that was a drop in the bucket compared to what was needed against the playoff-tied Kings. Sacramento beat Portland’s starting lineup of Sharpe, Drew Eubanks, Trendon Watford, Matisse Thybulle and Skylar Mays. We can’t even mention what they did on the bench on their way to a 138-114 win.
The Blazers earned their 45th loss tonight. The Orlando Magic defeated the Washington Wizards with a fourth-quarter rally and have now won four of their last five games. The Indiana Pacers defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder last night. As a result, both the Pacers and Magic are stuck at 44 losses, giving the Blazers the fifth-worst record in the league with five games remaining. If the Blazers lose, they retain that position and a 10.5% chance of being the first overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft.
Now that you’ve got that down, here’s how the action went.
first quarter
The Blazers initially tried to capitalize on the trait that has kept them dancing all year: distance shooting. Matisse Thybulle and newcomer Skylar Mays each hit a three, while Shaedon Sharpe hit a long two. The Kings were more than content to have Portland bombed away, probably assuming low-percentage gunfire would catch up with them.
Meanwhile, Sacramento made 8 of his first 12 shots in the heart of the alley, hitting about half of them. That wouldn’t hurt Portland too much since their own shots were fired. But the Kings also hit a few threes of their own, meaning they matched Portland’s strong color and then added more on top. At the first timeout, with 6:30 in the first, Sacramento led 18-14. The Blazers had attempted 8 shots in that span, 6 of them over the top of the key.
Portland’s offense didn’t necessarily improve after the brief respite, but they made up for it with offensive rebounds and content with extra tries instead of extra accuracy. That just kept them afloat as Sacramento continued to score from the inside, a three-pointer being salted by Keegan Murray alongside. The kings encouraged Portland to stay out by blocking shots or charging charges against attempts inside. Jump shots were the easiest way to avoid frustration.
Sharpe hit a three in the closing minutes of the period, as did fellow newcomer Shaquille Harrison. That was good. The Blazers missed their other candid looks from a distance, which was bad. Luckily, the Kings also missed many open shots, keeping the lead relatively safe compared to the disaster it could have been. Sacramento led 36-27 by one.
second quarter
To no one’s surprise, Portland’s three-point attack continued early in the second game. In three minutes, the Blazers had hoisted five triples. Jabari Walker, Nassir Little and Mays connected, making the percentages look good and closing the gap on the scoreboard. However, it was hard to avoid the obvious conclusion. If nothing changed, the Blazers would start as soon as those shots stopped ringing.
Fear not, tankoholics. Portland proved utterly incapable of stopping the kings in the alley. On the run, out of the dribbling, with the pass… we’d have a book by Dr. Seuss can write about how Sacramento scored at the cup.
At halftime, the Blazers finally started attacking the lane successfully. They also drew fouls that accompanied those shots. This gave them enough basis to match the Kings’ rating, although the defense remained suspect. In a minor reversal, Sacramento began shooting outside as the Blazers entered. Bonus points since Portland’s defensive issues were a little less exposed this way.
Portland continued to revel in free throws as the minutes ended in the half. That was a really big deal, pretty much the only really unguarded shots they got. Those shots, plus a few more offensive rebounds, continued the life support the home team so desperately needed. The kings did not falter, but neither could they run away.
The Blazers maintained a 6- to 9-point lead most of the time. A brief flurry in the final two minutes made the Kings look better than they actually played. Portland eventually settled for a 71-59 Sacramento lead at the break.
Third quarter
Sounds of Gordon Lightfoot echoed through the Moda Center early in the third as De’Aaron Fox awoke from a game-long sleep to hit a three and a long two alongside threes from Harrison Barnes and Keegan Murray (again). Head coach Chauncey Billups radioed the emergency message that the ship was taking on water and called for a timeout barely three minutes into his team’s 18-year-old period.
Portland’s cause was not helped when Nassir Little left the game with a left ankle problem. Little didn’t set the dish on fire, but the list was short nonetheless. Portland couldn’t afford to lose a bailiff, let alone a player.
Shaedon Sharpe did what he could and hit a couple of threes. Kevin Knox II hit one too. But that wouldn’t help the defense. Sacramento, teeth in teeth, passed and ran with abandon. Portland’s buckets acted like a boxer trapped in the corner setting up the guard to survive another round.
The Kings hit 9 of their first 14 shots in the third. Had the Blazers hit all 14 of them, and had all the extra marks been three-point marks, Portland still wouldn’t have made up the difference. Spoiler alert: The Blazers didn’t make it to No. 14 out of 14. They haven’t caught up the gap either.
Portland managed to score enough to keep the lead relatively even after that initial excitement at 18, largely by hitting the occasional stray treble. They went 6-10 over the arc in the period. That was kind of an achievement. The Kings led 104-89 after three.
fourth quarter
Shaedon Sharpe switched it on early in the fourth, hitting a corner three from a Kevin Knox assist and then scoring twice at the Cup. This reduced the lead to just 7 with the remaining 7:41. It also provided the only momentum the Moda Center crowd would experience all evening.
A pair of threes from Malik Monk and (who else?) Keegan Murray, followed by a Domantas Sabonis and a layup from a Monk assist put an end to that. Sacramento put on a 12-3 run and pushed the lead past 20 without a second thought. That’s all she wrote and all we’ll do too.
Next
Stay tuned for more analysis coming soon!
box score
The Blazers continue the march through their final games of the season, leaving the Moda Center to face the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday with an early start at 12:30 p.m. in the Pacific Rim.
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