Final: Celtics 116, Blazers 115- Jayson Tatum outduels Damian Lillard

WHO: Celtics (28-26) vs. Trailblazers (31-22)
WHEN: 10:00 p.m.
WHERE: Moda Center
RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub
TV: TNT

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS

Celtics
G: Kemba Walker
G: Marcus Smart
SF: Jayson Tatum
PF: Jaylen Brown
C: Robert Williams III 

Trail Blazers
G: Damian Lillard
G: CJ McCollum
SF: Norman Powell
PF: Robert Covington
C: Jusuf Nurkic 

LIVE COVERAGE, by John Karalis

Fourth quarter

• Carmelo Anthony has 7 of Portland's 9 points in the 4th to keep the Blazers close


• Marcus Smart's defense is amazing


• Grant Williams is making some good plays. He drew a charge on Enes Kanter, blocked Lillard, and made a 3-pointer


• Damian Lillard hits 2 3-pointers and Stevens calls a time out. He wants to avoid "Dame Time" as much as he can here.


• A 13-4 Blazers run, including another 3 from Lillard and one from CJ McCollum, has given Portland the lead.


• A pair of Tatum free throws give's Boston the lead with :40 left


• Tatum did a Damian Lillard impression, drilling a side-step 3 to make it 116-112


• Norm Powell nailed a quick 3 and it's still a 1 point game with :05 left


• Marcus Smart missed 2 free throws at the end, the second on purpose and Portland ran out of time.

• Robert Williams was an early sub as he had issues with Jusuf Nurkic


• Both sides are exchanging runs. This is a shot-making clinic.


• Jayson Tatum is getting it going, scoring on drive sand from 3


• Boston is having trouble stopping Portland. In fact, both teams are having trouble with each other and it's a back-and-forth game


• The Celtics went on 10-2 run to close the 3rd, running off Portland misses and turnovers


• Tatum had 17 points in the 3rd quarter

• The pace has slowed down dramatically and this has turned into a grind of a quarter. Boston's ball movement has slowed but it benefits Carmelo Anthony, who is up to 12 points at the 7:26 mark of the 2nd.


• Boston has picked up the defense as the pace has picked up again. Marcus Smart is diving all over the floor to make plays and Jaylen Brown tracked down a loose ball for a transition layup.


• Walker is playing pretty well. He is up to 14 points 3 assists and 5 rebounds and Boston is in front.


• Boston is on an 18-4 run, getting offense off their defense and good ball movement, which has returned


• Portland closed the half on a 9-0 run. Boston started rushing some shots and Jusuf Nurkic getting a couple of easy buckets

• Both teams are hitting a lot of shots in a back and forth start to this game


• Portland has put together a 10-0 run behind a lot of balanced scoring, but Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum are a combined 4-5 from deep, which is problematic


• Kemba Walker has opened up 2-3 from deep, which is a good sign. Tatum has started slow again, taking and making just one shot before being subbed out at his usual time.


• Boston answered the initial Portland run nicely by pushing the ball and going on an 8-2 run


• Carmelo Anthony came in and hit a couple of shots to push the lead to 9

• Celtics vs. Blazers spread: Blazers -1


• Celtics vs. Blazers over-under: 230 points


• Celtics vs. Blazers money line: Blazers -106, Celtics -114