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01/28 22:26 CST Simons, Portland hand Houston another home loss, 125-110
Simons, Portland hand Houston another home loss, 125-110
By KRISTIE RIEKEN
AP Sports Writer
HOUSTON (AP) --- Anfernee Simons scored 27 points, CJ McCollum had 26 and the
Portland Trail Blazers handed Houston its franchise-record 10th straight home
loss, beating the Rockets 125-110 on Friday night.
Jusuf Nurkic had 25 points and 13 rebounds for Portland, which had dropped two
in a row. Norman Powell finished with 16 points.
Coach Chauncey Billups said the Blazers are at their best when they share the
ball like they did Friday.
"That's how we like to play," he said. "We're just moving the basketball. We
try to take what the defense gives us. ... That's beautiful for us to be
playing like that."
It was Houston's third straight loss overall. According to STATS, the Rockets
became the first team in NBA history to drop 10 straight home games by nine or
more points.
The Rockets haven't won in Houston since a victory over the Nets on Dec. 8.
"It's tough," Christian Wood said. "We want to for sure win games at home for
these fans. They deserve better and we have to be better."
Houston trailed by 12 midway through the fourth before consecutive 3s from Wood
and Jalen Green cut the lead to 108-102.
McCollum responded for the Blazers, scoring five points in a 7-2 spurt that
pushed their advantage to 115-104 with three minutes left.
Portland put together a 10-2 run, highlighted by a three-point play from
Nurkic, to make it 125-110 with about a minute left.
"I was very proud of the way we closed the game," Billups said. "We did a good
job of finding what we wanted at the end and just attacking."
Billups was asked about McCollum's play late to help the Blazers fend off
Houston's rally attempt.
"This is just who he is," Billups said. "He's just a special talent. No moment
is too big for CJ."
Wood and Garrison Mathews had 21 points apiece for the Rockets. Wood also led
the team with 15 rebounds.
McCollum scored in the final seconds of the third to give Portland a 91-83
lead, but Kenyon Martin Jr. responded with a dunk for Houston just before the
buzzer.
TIP-INS
Blazers: Ben McLemore made four of Portland's 17 3-pointers. Robert Covington
had three 3s and 13 points.
Rockets: Kevin Porter Jr. missed the game after entering health and safety
protocols. ... Green and Martin had 17 points each. ... Josh Christopher added
11 points.
THEY SAID IT
"We dug ourselves a hole in the first quarter and we were competitive and we
fight and we have grit and we work ourselves back into the games. But the
problem is the beginning like, don't put yourself in the position where you
have to exhibit all of those things." --- Rockets coach Stephen Silas on his
postgame message to the team.
UP NEXT
Blazers: Visit Chicago on Sunday.
Rockets: Host Golden State on Monday night.
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