The Portland Trail Blazers trailed just once during the first 45 minutes of their last game and still couldn’t secure a victory.
The Trail Blazers will attempt to rebound from a painful collapse when they face the Miami Heat on Saturday night in the opener of a five-game homestand.
Portland seemed in good shape against the host Dallas Mavericks when it led by 10 with 4 1/2 minutes to go Thursday night. But the Trail Blazers went frigid and Dallas became hotter than lava with 16 straight points during a 18-2 closing run to post an unlikely 117-111 victory.
“It was an unfortunate time to go cold,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said.
It marked the second time the Trail Blazers faded during a 2-3 road trip. Portland held a 22-point lead in Detroit before succumbing 118-115 on Monday.
“I thought we had a good trip,” Billups said. “We had a couple games we could’ve won and didn’t.
“I think we’re playing well. I felt the same way after the Detroit game. Games that we had won, and just couldn’t come up with it at the end.”
The Heat are 2-1 to start a six-game road trip after back-to-back victories over the Golden State Warriors and Utah Jazz.
On Thursday, Miami recorded a 97-92 victory over the Jazz as Tyler Herro scored 23 points and Jaime Jaquez Jr. added a season-best 20.
Herro went 4-of-9 from 3-point range and Jaquez was 3-of-5, but the rest of the Heat were a scant 7-of-36. Overall, Miami made 14 of 50 from behind the arc.
Prior to the trip, the Heat were routed 136-100 at home by Utah on Saturday.
“Our energy, collective spirit, how we came out was completely different than how we came out in Miami against Utah,” Herro said after Thursday’s game. “We can win games in the mud or we can win high-scoring games, but our identity is really more on the defensive end and being gritty.”
Herro has scored 20 or more points in 11 of the Heat’s last 15 games. He is averaging 23.6 points per game.
Saturday’s game will be the fifth of Jimmy Butler’s seven-game suspension for “conduct detrimental to the team.” Miami also is on the road for the final two games of the suspension — against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday and Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday.
Jaquez seems to be prospering with Butler away, by averaging 16.8 points over the four games. He even had his first career triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in Monday’s 123-118 double-overtime loss to the Sacramento Kings. He also had five steals in that game.
After a strong rookie season, Jaquez was less productive this season until the recent stretch.
“You can have ups and downs in your career whether it’s your rookie season or sophomore season,” Jaquez said. “My important thing is keeping my mentality always at an even keel.
“A lot of people here have been giving me a lot of confidence and telling me to play my game, trust the work I’ve put in.”
The Trail Blazers will be trusting they can bounce back. They trailed briefly in the second quarter and controlled the contest against Dallas before wilting down the stretch.
Shaedon Sharpe had 22 points and eight rebounds, Anfernee Simons also scored 22 and Scoot Henderson had 20 off the bench.
Simons has scored 22 or more points in six of the past seven games. He had a season-best 36 in the loss to the Pistons.
This is the first of two meetings between the teams this season. Miami has won six of the past seven matchups.
–Field Level Media
