It was Reath\u2019s best game of the 2025\/25 campaign so far, surpassing his season-high 12 minutes against the Utah Jazz last month.<\/p>\n
The Aussie big man shot an ultra efficient 4-of-5 from beyond the arc and added two assists in a game that went down to the wire after Portland came back from 22 points down.<\/p>\n
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Deni Avdija\u2019s near triple-double (26 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists) led the way for the Blazers and Jerami Grant chimed in 20 points with five rebounds and five assists off the bench.<\/p>\n
Reath, who had nine points in 12 minutes to half-time, drilled a huge 3-pointer in the dying seconds of the third term as the shot block expired to get Portland back within five points at 86-81.<\/p>\n
It helped swing momentum Portland\u2019s way ahead of the home side\u2019s dominant 44-33 final term. <\/p>\n
Back-to-back threes to Jrue Holiday and Avdija extended the Blazers\u2019 lead to 115-109 with 2:12 left in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
Down three with six seconds remaining, the Thunder had two chances to force overtime.<\/p>\n
Isaiah Joe missed a 3-pointer in the dying seconds, before OKC secured an offensive rebound and found Joe for another last-gasp three, but the sharpshooter\u2019s was foot on line as he was fouled with 0.5 left.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis game could be decided, literally, by 2-3 inches. That\u2019s how much Joe had of that foot on the line when he fired off the triple,\u201d Portland commentator Kevin Calabro said.<\/p>\n
Joe missed the second free throw intentionally but the Thunder weren\u2019t able to quickly put back another shot to consolidate the Blazers win.<\/p>\n
It ended Portland\u2019s 16-game losing streak to the Thunder, who fell to 8-1 as the last NBA team that was undefeated. <\/p>\n
OKC, led by Shai Gilgeous Alexander\u2019s game-high 35 points, were missing three starters in Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Lu Dort,<\/p>\n
The Blazers improved to 5-3 overall \u2013 including 5-2 under interim coach Tiago Splitter \u2014 after the arrest of head coach Chauncey Billups last month.<\/p>\n
McGee drops 37-PTS in Hawks upset | 01:21<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Landale entered Thursday\u2019s NBA slates the fourth-ranked 3-point shooter by percentage, and he continued to let it fly from the perimeter with success against the Houston Rockets. <\/p>\n
Landale, again starting for the Grizzlies in the absence of Zach Edey, scored 11 points on 4-7 shooting and 3-4 from three-point land against the Rockets, his former team, adding three rebounds and a block to his stat-line in 21 minutes. <\/p>\n
The St Mary\u2019s collegiate star didn\u2019t have it easy in terms of his defensive assignment, drawing emerging star Alperen Sengun. <\/p>\n
And Sengun got to work early on the offensive end, milking a shooting foul out of Landale in the early going. <\/p>\n
The Turkish big man had nine points in the opening period and finished his night with 20 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists in 33 minutes. <\/p>\n
Landale sunk a three with his second attempt of the evening, with Sengun sagging off just enough for the big Aussie to launch from distance. <\/p>\n
\u201cDid not think at this point in the season you\u2019d say the Grizzlies\u2019 best three-point shooter is Jock Landale,\u201d the Grizzlies broadcast joked. <\/p>\n
In fact, Landale entered as the fourth-best three-point shooter by percentage in the NBA, and that clip was substantiated on Thursday. <\/p>\n
The 30-year-old Geelong Grammar product also ran the floor in transition for an easy basket in the first quarter. In his first seven minutes of action, he had five points on 2-3 shooting. <\/p>\n
Late in the second quarter, Ja Morant found Landale in the same spot he made his first three \u2014 and it was a similar result, splashing home a sweet, high-arcing shot from distance despite a late Sengun close-out. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Jock Landale revenge game \u2014 he\u2019s got eight (points),\u201d caller Pete Pranica said on the Memphis broadcast. <\/p>\n
In the third quarter, Landale made his third three-ball of the evening, moving to 11 points on 3-4 shooting from distance. <\/p>\n
He mightn\u2019t have drawn a rapid close-out on his first attempt of the night, but each successive attempt saw more gravity towards the six-foot-11 centre. <\/p>\n
Notably, Landale, in his fifth year in the NBA, has started every Memphis game this season in the injury absence of centre Edey, who continues in his recovery from ankle surgery. <\/p>\n
But while the Edey is an elite rim protector, Landale continues to demonstrate an ability to stretch defences with his upper-echelon outside shooting \u2014 which helps massively in spacing the floor. Edey does not have that same ability. <\/p>\n
Thus, Grizzlies coach Tomas Iisalo will have interesting decisions to make regarding how he splits playing time between his big men once Edey is healthy enough to return to the hardwood. <\/p>\n
The Grizzlies have been in the spotlight for the wrong reasons early this season, with superstar point guard Ja Morant making headlines for clashing with new head coach Iisalo. <\/p>\n
Morant made comments to reporters after Memphis\u2019 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers last Saturday, with the star guard telling them to \u201cgo ask the coaching staff\u201d when asked about what wasn\u2019t working for him.<\/p>\n
Then, when asked what the team could have done better, Morant said that \u201caccording to them\u201d (the coaching staff) it would probably involve not playing him. <\/p>\n