By The Associated Press
08/01/2020 | 01: 46 a.m.
TORONTO (AP) – Damian Lillard was marked by two men. Carmelo Anthony appeared and achieved the score that meant the triumph for the Trail Blazers.
Anthony hit his shot four seconds from the end, and Portland climbed to beat the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday 101-99.
“A guy with his ability is simply waiting for his opportunities,” Lillard said of his partner. “He had a player who was watching him, and he put himself in his place. Once he did it and I saw him raise his hand, I thought he was going to score. ”
Anthony totaled 28 points, while Lillard scored 20 and Hassan Whiteside added 14, in addition to capturing 16 rebounds, to score his sixth straight double. The Blazers cut a four-game losing streak in Toronto and won for the second time in 10 games against the Raptors, the current NBA monarchs.
“This greatly elevates our confidence and our morale,” Anthony said.
Coach Terry Stotts agreed.
“I am truly proud of the way our team competed tonight, particularly in the fourth period,” he said. “At the end of the season, one ends up remembering different matches. This could be a match that we will identify as one that changed course. ”
Anfernee Simons scored 12 points and C.J. McCollum finished with 10, after missing Sunday’s game, a defeat in Miami, due to an infection in the airways.
Portland had lost six of its last seven games.
After Anthony’s enceste, Kyle Lowry had one last chance for the Raptors. About to lose his balance, he threw a triple that hit the ring just when the buzzer sounded.
Lowry added 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Serge Ibaka added 17 units and 11 rebounds for Toronto, decimated by injuries, which fell just for the second time in 16 duels against teams with negative records.
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