-LaMarcus Aldridge takes his time and drops in a jump hook over Jeff Green. “That’s your guy,” says Mike Rice.
Blazers Pull Away, Thanks To Marcus Camby And Bad Thunder Offense
-Serge Ibaka commits a foul, which brings in Nick Collison for Ibaka. The foul is big because Portland’s in the penalty. Marcus Camby was the guy fouled, but Mike Rice says that Martell Webster should step to the line instead, to try to fool the officials. Mike Rice, encouraging cheating since the Stone Age.
-The Blazers double Durant, force a long three from Westbrook that misses, and Batum dunks it on the other end. Blazers by seven, 3:09 left. Camby gets the rebound, and Rice proclaims that it’s the best rebound he’s seen in 100 years. He actually said “100 years.” I knew Mike Rice was old, but I didn’t know he was that old.
-Portland scores against and now leads by nine.
-Wow, Russell Westbrook has the ball poked away, and the Blazers have a fastbreak until Nick Collison literally tackled LaMarcus Aldridge. Somehow, Collison was only called for a Flagrant 1 on the play. The Blazers announcers flipped out, and I’d transcribe the exchange, but it went something like “NICK COLLISON IS A DIRTY PLAYER, THROW HIM OUT OF THE GAME OF LIFE!” That’s not exactly what they said, but you get the jist of it.
I’m making fun of the Blazers announcers, but that foul is pretty bad. It definitely should have been a Flagrant 2.
-Aldridge hits both free throws, then Camby tips in a Blazer miss. Blazers up 12. It’s looking like this one is over. Enjoy the Lakers, OKC!
-Hold that thought - a Durant three and Collison layup cuts the Blazer lead to seven with a minute and a half left.
-Portland gets a good possession, as Martell Webster cuts backdoor and draws a foul on Jeff Green. “A good hard foul,” Mike Rice says.
-OKC cuts the lead to six and looks like they’ll get the ball back with a minute left, but Russell Westbrook steps out of bounds and the ball goes back to Portland. “He’s out! Easy call!” Mike Rice explains. Mike Barrett quietly chuckles and goes for Rice’s meds.
-The Thunder don't foul for some reason, and the Blazers miss a jumper. Kevin Durant gets the ball back, passes up two 40-foot threes and throws the ball out of bounds to the official. That'll officially do it. Thanks for having a great season, Oklahoma City Thunder. Enjoy playing the Lakers in the first round.
-Portland fans start chanting "MARCUS CAMBY" as Camby exits the game following a ridiculous game when his team needed it most. Good for him. Good for Blazers fans. Good for this team. For them to win 50 games in a season like this - I mean, holy crap. That's incredible.
-SB Nation's Andrew Sharp makes a good point: imagine if the Thunder will still in Seattle. Wouldn't this rivalry be even more amazing? That seems like a good thought to close this liveblog with. Hope you enjoyed it.
-DURANT. KOBE. It's the NBA Playoffs, coming up next!
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