Thunder vs. Trail Blazers: Lillard’s Logo 3 Sparks 123-103 Portland Win
Damian Lillard scored 13 of his 25 in a 38-21 third quarter, and the teams meet again Wednesday in Portland with OKC still shorthanded.
Damian Lillard picked a good night to find his shot again. The 36-year-old scored 25 points, 13 of them in a third-quarter burst capped by a 3 from the logo, and the Portland Trail Blazers pulled away for a 123-103 win in Tuesday’s Thunder vs. Trail Blazers game at Moda Center.
The two teams do it again Wednesday night in Portland, the second half of a back-to-back set, and the shorthanded Thunder will be looking for answers.
🏀 TUESDAY'S FINAL SCORES 🏀
Damian Lillard scores 13 of his 25 PTS on 5-6 FGM in the 3Q to steer the @trailblazers to victory at home!
Deni Avdija: 24 PTS, 6 REB, 8 AST
Sidy Cissoko: 17 PTS, 3 AST, 3 3PM https://t.co/pkgp9A8oDh pic.twitter.com/8HKSz8eL3j— NBA (@NBA) November 11, 2026
How the Blazers broke it open
It was 59-59 at halftime. Then Portland outscored Oklahoma City 38-21 in the third quarter, hitting 14 of 26 shots in the period, KATU reported.
Lillard started it. After Jared McCain’s 3 put the Thunder up 69-67, Lillard answered with one of his own, then hit two more in a row to make it 79-71. He scored seven points during a 14-2 run that Robert Williams III finished with a dunk. With 1.1 seconds left in the quarter, he pulled up from about 30 feet and made it 97-80.
He didn’t play in the fourth. He didn’t need to. Lillard finished 8 of 15 from the field, 4 of 10 from three and 5 of 5 at the line, a welcome sight after he shot 33% from deep over his previous five games, Sports Illustrated’s Blazers site noted.
Deni Avdija added 24 points, eight assists and six rebounds. “We came out in the second half and tried to be more aggressive, and we made shots,” he said. Sidy Cissoko scored 17, including two 3s in 55 seconds that pushed the lead to 20 with 4:53 left.
A shorthanded Thunder team
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 20 points at halftime and finished with 26 on 8-of-22 shooting, plus eight rebounds. He also sat the fourth quarter. McCain scored 21 and Ajay Mitchell had 14.
Oklahoma City is playing without a lot of its rotation. Jalen Williams (ankle), Chet Holmgren (knee) and Cason Wallace (shoulder) are all out, and Jaylin Williams missed his fourth straight game with back spasms, The Associated Press reported. The Thunder went 8 of 22 from three.
The loss ended a four-game winning streak and dropped OKC to 8-3. Portland moved to 7-3 and snapped a two-game skid. It was only the Blazers’ second win over the Thunder in their past 21 meetings, according to Field Level Media.
Thunder vs. Trail Blazers rematch: what to watch
Back-to-backs against the same team usually come down to adjustments, and the Thunder have an obvious one to make. Gilgeous-Alexander needs more help, and with three rotation players out, it has to come from McCain, Mitchell and the bench.
For Portland, the question is whether Lillard’s shooting holds. When he’s hitting from that range, defenses have to pick him up early, and that opens the floor for Avdija and the rest of the group.
Tuesday was a big NBA night across the board. In the East, Paul George scored 36 in his return to Philadelphia, and Karl-Anthony Towns kept his double-double streak alive against Milwaukee. In Salt Lake City, Giannis Antetokounmpo played through a sprained wrist and passed Gary Payton in a Heat win over the Jazz.
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Sources: AP (2), KATU, Sports Illustrated, Field Level Media, NBA
