“Damian Lillard set franchise and career highs with 71 points and 13 3-pointers, and the Portland Trail Blazers snapped a two-game skid with a 131-114 victory over the Houston Rockets on Sunday night,” reported ESPN.
According to ESPN Stats & Information research, Lillard became the oldest player at age 32 to score 70 points in NBA history, and the only player age 30 or older to accomplish the feat. He also tied Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell for the most points in a game this season after Mitchell also scored 71 in a win over Chicago on Jan. 2. Lillard broke his own franchise record of 61 points, which he’d done twice, on a 3-pointer with 4:42 left that also topped his career record for 3s in a game with 11.
ESPN reported that Lillard’s 13 3-pointers were one shy of the NBA record set by Golden State’s Klay Thompson in 2018, with Thompson’s Warriors teammate Stephen Curry (2016) and Chicago’s Zach LaVine (2019) also making 13 3s.
The crowd at the Moda Center was on its feet, phones recording the moment, while chanting “M-V-P!” in the final minutes, as Lillard left the game with 44 seconds left, tied with Mitchell, Elgin Baylor (1960) and David Robinson (1994) for the eighth-most points scored in a game in NBA history. Wilt Chamberlain owns the league record with 100 for Philadelphia against New York on March 2, 1962, in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
ESPN noted that Lillard had 41 points and eight 3-pointers by halftime, which was a career high in a half for Lillard and the most points in a half for any player in the league this season. He had 50 by the start of the fourth quarter, and Sunday was also Lillard’s fifth career 60-point game, breaking a tie for third most in NBA history. Only Chamberlain (32) and Kobe Bryant (six) have more.
Lillard has 15 games with 50 or more points, which is the sixth most in NBA history, ESPN added.
Jerami Grant added 13 points for the Blazers, who led by as many as 23, with Portland being part of a cluster of eight Western Conference teams just four wins apart that are vying for playoff spots. Alperen Sengun had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets, sitting in last place in the Western Conference with just 13 overall wins and nine straight losses.
Although Houston trailed 102-88 heading into the final quarter, they scored the first six points of the period to close the gap to 102-94. But Grant’s 3-pointer for Portland extended the margin to 108-98, and Lillard’s 3, his 11th of the night to tie his career high, made it 113-103 with 6:43 left. He added a driving layup and a free throw, and Houston could not catch up.
Lillard started after resting for Thursday night’s 133-116 loss to Sacramento. He participated in the NBA All-Star Game and won the 3-point contest the previous weekend. However, Portland remained without center Jusuf Nurkic (left calf) and guard Anfernee Simons (right ankle).
The Blazers had a 31-30 lead after one quarter, led by Lillard’s 16. Portland extended the lead to 50-39 after Lillard went on a personal 9-2 run against the Rockets, capped by a 3-pointer from 35 feet out, and the Blazers led 73-58.
The Athletic Reports 
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