Two standout performances from the Spurs’ loss to the Trailblazers

Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images

Derrick White and Trey Lyles provide a spark on the road

Thursday night’s loss to the Trailblazers featured a frustratingly familiar scene. The Spurs built a double-digit lead, Portland swiftly erased it, the good guys recovered, and then a one-two punch of Carmelo Anthony and Gary Trent Jr. sealed San Antonio’s fate.

While yet another fourth-quarter collapse sent the Silver and Black further down the Western Conference standings, Trey Lyles exploded for a season-high 23 points. The first-year Spur knocked down four triples, put the ball on the floor, and finished through contact for an and-one.

Lyles was on the offensive from the first tip and actively sought to find his spots on the court. He finished with his first double-double of the season, and his recent resurgence has the stretch-four averaging 10.5 points on 55.8% from the field and 45.8% from three-point land over the last six contests.

Derrick White similarly had a solid bounce-back game with 15 points after failing to score more than 5 points in the previous two outings. The third-year combo guard made several heady plays and even got CJ McCollum into some late foul trouble.

He also drained all seven of his free throw attempts, dished out a triplet of assists, and added another swat to his growing shot-blocking resume. Derrick has been so active in that department that his 13 blocks since January 24th rank first among all guards over that timeframe, which is impressive considering his competition includes longer more explosive athletes like Jrue Holiday, Lonzo Ball, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

And no highlights section would be complete without the most jaw-dropping sequence of the game. DeMar DeRozan had one of the worst shooting nights of his incredibly efficient season, but he more than made up for it with this booming third-quarter jam.

Two standout performances from the Spurs’ loss to the Trailblazers
Two standout performances from the Spurs’ loss to the Trailblazers

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