Central Plains FFA Chapter

11/11 23:55 CST Trail Blazers sweep the Thunder with a 118-108 win Trail Blazers sweep the Thunder with a 118-108 win By ERIK GARCIA GUNDERSEN Associated Press PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) --- Deni Avdija had 28 points, Damian Lillard scored 18 points, and the Portland Trail Blazers completed a two-game sweep of the Oklahoma City Thunder with a 118-108 win on Wednesday night. Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led all scorers with 31 points, including 23 in the second half, as the Thunder coughed up a fourth-quarter lead. Isaiah Hartenstein had 20 points and 11 rebounds. Portland center Donovan Clingan had 12 rebounds and 3 blocks, and Jrue Holiday pitched in 19 points off the bench. Oklahoma City trailed by 12 in the third quarter, but a 3-pointer by Nique Clifford tied the game at 88 with 11:11 left. A loose ball led to a layup by Kenrich Williams to give the Thunder their first lead since the first half and forcing a Blazers timeout with 10:41 left. Portland's stars rallied the Blazers, with Avdija and Lillard scoring 20 of their 30 fourth-quarter points. Lillard's 3-pointer with 6:17 left cut the lead to 94-93. After free throws by Gilgeous-Alexander and a putback by Robert Williams III, Portland took the lead back 99-98 on free throws by Avdija with 5:24 left. A floater by Lillard made it 108-100 with 2 minutes left. Free throws by Gilgeous-Alexander made it 108-102, only for Lillard to answer with a driving layup to make it 110-102. Jared McCain's 3-pointer with 1:19 left pulled OKC within 110-105. But Lillard's free throws made it 112-105 with a minute left. After trailing by as many as nine, Portland closed the 1st half on a 15-4 run. After technical foul on OKC coach Mark Daigenault made it 51-45, Holiday hit a 3-pointer with 1:13 left to make it 54-45.

Up next Oklahoma City: Visits the L.A. Clippers on Friday night. Portland: Visits Sacramento on Friday night. ___ See AP's full NBA coverage here