The Portland Trail Blazers entered the Wells Fargo Center on Friday night as heavy underdogs against the Philadelphia 76ers, contenders in the Eastern Conference, then proceeded to jump out to a double-digit lead in the first quarter and an 18-point lead in the second quarter.
The Blazers looked remarkable doing so. The question became, could they hold on?
For 42 minutes, they did. Then it all unraveled.
The 76ers overcame a 13-point deficit with 5:52 remaining, then with the game on the line went to Joel Embiid, who hit a fadeaway jumper with 1.1 seconds remaining to give his team a 120-119 victory.
The Blazers’ final chance resulted in Damian Lillard failing to get off a deep shot as time expired.
The loss ruined the spectacular return of Anfernee Simons, who scored a team-high 34 points on 12-of-22 shooting and hit 8 of 12 three-pointers.
Lillard scored 22 points with 11 assists and Jerami Grant scored 24 points.
Embiid led the 76ers with 39 points.
In those pivotal final minutes, the Blazers committed a series of miscues while also failing to hit shots. Drew Eubanks missed a dunk, Lillard committed two turnovers, Nurkic missed two free throws, and all told, the Blazers shot 2 of 9 from the field.
On the evening, Portland struggled from the free-throw line They hit on 20 of 30 (66.7%). The Blazers entered the game shooting 80.6%.
WHAT IT MEANS
The Blazers (31-36), by losing to the 76ers (44-22), fell to 2-3 on this six-game road trip and still have not defeated a winning team since Golden State on Feb. 8. The Blazers entered the day tied with Oklahoma City for 13th in the Western Conference. The loss dropped the Blazers into sole possession of 13th, a half-game behind the Thunder (31-35) and 1½ games behind New Orleans (32-34) and the Los Angeles Lakers (32-34), who are tied for 10th. The Blazers play at the Pelicans on Sunday.
Portland Trail Blazers’ Damian Lillard, left, dribbles past Philadelphia 76ers’ James Harden during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Friday, March 10, 2023, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) APAP
NEXT UP
The Blazers play at 4 p.m. Sunday at the New Orleans Pelicans (32-34).
— Aaron Fentress reported from Philadelphia.
afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook). Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts
