Even within the friendly confines of the Moda Center, it was difficult to envision Portland winning Game 3 on Friday night without a strong performance from Damian Lillard. The Blazers All-Pro point guard finished the evening with 28 points on 24 shots, failing to find a rhythm as he went 2-of-9 from three. But Portland survived without its headliner on Friday behind 41 points from C.J. McCollum, retaining home-court advantage with a 140-137 quadruple-overtime victory. It was the longest postseason game played since 1953.
McCollum took the reigns in what’s usually considered Dame Time. Aside from two key layups late in the third overtime, Lillard was quiet throughout the fourth quarter and the quartet of overtime periods, taking a backseat to his backcourt partner in crime.