Portland Trail Blazers: 3 takeaways from Game 1 vs. Pelicans

The 2018 NBA Playoffs have officially begun and the Portland Trail Blazers and New Orleans Pelicans met for Game 1 of the first round in Portland. What did we learn from their postseason opener?

The Portland Trail Blazers have fallen behind 0-1 in their first round playoff series against the New Orleans Pelicans after a 97-95 loss in Game 1 Saturday night. The Blazers fans were loud and ready as this was the first time the Blazers have played a Game 1 at home since 2008.

In the first half, Portland’s star players in Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic went a combined 2-of-18 from the field for seven points. The Blazers looked out of sync and were having a hard time getting a shot to fall. They were saved in the first half by their bench players.

Portland had no answer for the Pelicans’ two main players, Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday. They were aggressive on both ends of the floor and combined for 32 points at the half. Even though it was a rough first two quarters on both ends of the floor for Portland, the Blazers were only down 45-36 and had a chance to regroup at the half.

In the second half, things did not start much better. The Pelicans took control right away and pushed their lead to 17 at one point in the third. Everything that was working for the Pelicans and going wrong for the Blazers in the first half carried over into the second half.

The Blazers did make things interesting in the fourth quarter. They were down 13 with five minutes left in the game, and then went on a run and got the lead down to one point but could not find a way to take the lead in the final seconds. The last five minutes of the game were the best the Blazers looked all game and hopefully will be something they can build upon as they head into Game 2.

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The Blazers as a team grabbed 52 rebounds, dished 17 assists, got 10 steals, and blocked six shots while shooting 37.8 percent from the field and 30.8 percent from the 3-point line. They looked a bit rusty the entire game, had a hard time defending the Pelicans and could not get their offense going at all.

The Blazers finished the game being led by Lillard (18 points, seven assists, seven rebounds) and McCollum (19 points, two assists, two rebounds). Most of Lillard and McCollum’s points came in the fourth quarter.

The Pelicans as a team grabbed 49 rebounds, dished 26 assists, blocked 12 shots, stole eight balls and shot 47.7 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from the 3-point line. They were sharp on both ends of the floor tonight and seemed to be a step ahead of the Blazers in every way. Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday led them. Davis finished with 35 points, 14 rebounds, four blocks and two steals. Holiday finished with 21 points, seven rebounds, two blocks, two assists, one steal.

Bearing all this in mind, here’s a look at three takeaways from Game 1.