Damian Lillard set franchise and career highs with 71 points — tied for the most in the NBA this season — 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.
Lillard 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 mark 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.
In the final minutes, the crowd at the Moda Center was on its feet, phones recording the moment, while chanting “MVP! MVP!"
Lillard left the game with 44 seconds left.
Lillard had 41 points and eight 3-pointers by halftime. It 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.
Jerami Grant added 13 points for the Blazers, who led by as many as 23. Portland is part of a cluster of eight Western Conference 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.
