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The Best of the Day: January 28th, 2021
See the best of the day in sports from January 28, 2021 including HOU's comeback vs POR, Steph's supporting cast let him down, and more!
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The ‘Best of the Day’ is a daily PSO original series showcasing the most significant stories, highlights, and facts going on in the land of the NFL, NBA, & MLB every day. Get a recap on EVERYTHING that happened on 1/28 here.
Thursday night saw only four NBA games played after the previous night had 12. However, there were still some fantastic games, including Portland-Houston. The Trail Blazers weren’t able to hold on after opening up a 20-point lead in the first quarter, losing to the Rockets in a close one. Houston appears to have found their chemistry and a new-found focus on defense since trading the disgruntled James Harden. Also, the Warriors will only go as far as Steph’s supporting cast will go and Damian Lillard had another big night despite the team’s loss.
Here is the best of the day from January 28, 2021:
Rockets overcome 20-point 1st Qtr deficit and Dame’s big performance for the win
With the Rockets trailing 30-10 with just under three minutes remaining in the first quarter, it appeared that the Trail Blazers were on their way to an easy win. However, from there to the end of the third, Houston had the upper hand, outscoring Portland 76-47. After the Blazers took an 88-86 lead on a 9-0 run of their own to open the fourth, both teams traded buckets in a back-and-forth final 10 minutes. In the end, though, Houston was able to complete the comeback on newly-acquired SG Victor Oladipo‘s clutch layup to extend the lead to three points with 26.2 seconds left. Subsequent team free throws secured the 104-101 victory for the Rockets.
Houston has now won four straight and are 5-3 since trading James Harden (3-6 before). Further, all three losses are without John Wall, who missed the games due to left knee soreness. Their defensive rating has surged from 111.1 (22nd in the league) with Harden to 102.7 (ranked first) in the eight games since the blockbuster trade. If Wall can stay healthy and the team continues to focus on the defensive end, Houston can be dangerous. Meanwhile, Damian Lillard‘s 30-point, 9-assist night wasn’t enough for Portland (9-8), who was without CJ McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic. The Blazers now fall to the West’s eighth seed after their second straight defeat.
Oladipo attacks to extend the Rockets lead to 3!@trailblazers 98@HoustonRockets 101
— NBA (@NBA) January 29, 2021
26.2 left on TNT, Portland ball. pic.twitter.com/8RQ8Ylf3ks
Oladipo, Wood and Wall pace the @HoustonRockets 4th consecutive win! 🚀@VicOladipo: 25 PTS, 7 REB, 5 AST@Chriswood_5: 22 PTS, 12 REB@JohnWall: 20 PTS, 6 ASTpic.twitter.com/OEL05cMCQX
— NBA (@NBA) January 29, 2021
The Trail Blazers are the first team this season to lose multiple games after taking a 20-point lead.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 29, 2021
This is the 2nd time the Trail Blazers have blown a 20-point lead in multiple games within a season over the last 25 seasons. They also did this in 2016-17. pic.twitter.com/AEmNDsGBg9
Related: Stories of the Day
Warriors W-L total is completely dependent on Steph’s supporting cast
With Kevin Durant (Brooklyn) and Klay Thompson (injured) no longer around, Steph Curry has more on his plate than he ever has. The baby-faced assassin has answered the bell by averaging the most PPG (27.7) and FGA (20.0) as any year in his career besides his unanimous 2015-16 season. However, the Warriors are far from the 73-9 powerhouse they were five years ago as they currently own a 10-9 record and sit outside of the playoff picture at the No. 9 seed.
The difference for Golden State has nothing to do with their best player, who’s about as good as he’s ever been. It’s the rest of the squad. When Curry’s supporting cast combines to score 85+ points, the Warriors are 8-1. When Steph’s teammates fail to score that much, GSW falls to 2-8. Similarly, when all non-Steph Warriors collectively shoot 45% or better, the Dubs are 9-1, but sport a 1-8 record when they aren’t making enough shots to reach that threshold.
As good as Steph Curry is, he can’t do it all by himself. When his teammates step up, the Warriors are one of the best teams in the league, as proven by their impressive wins against the Lakers, Clippers, and Blazers. However, when Kelly Oubre Jr. shoots poorly (like he did on Thursday; 1-10 FG) and Andrew Wiggins isn’t putting the ball in the basket consistently, Golden St. can get dominated in any game like they did on Opening Night vs. Brooklyn or on this night to Phoenix. If the Warriors want to make it anywhere this season, it won’t be up to Steph. It’ll be determined by the rest of the crew.
Steph dances, drives and finishes strong at the cup!@warriors 57@Suns 58
— NBA (@NBA) January 29, 2021
21 PTS, 5 3PM for Curry on TNT pic.twitter.com/y7mflsgWut
Steph ➡️ Draymond ➡️ Wiseman!@warriors quick ball movement sets up the rook in Q3 on TNT pic.twitter.com/Tu2pIfSxS6
— NBA (@NBA) January 29, 2021
Related: NBA Takeaways of the Day
Air Jones Jr. ready for takeoff
DERRICK JONES JR ✈️✈️✈️✈️ pic.twitter.com/ziIL3GrXZ4
— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) January 29, 2021
Related: NBA Highlights | Portland Trail Blazers Highlights
PG Damian Lillard, POR (L @HOU): 30 PTS (11-23 FG | 5-11 3P), 9 AST, 4 REB, 0 BLK, 0 STL, 4 TO
#PlayerOfTheDay (1/28/21) - PG Damian Lillard, POR
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) January 29, 2021
TOP FACTS:
- Most PTS (30) by any player on January 28, 2021
- AVG 32.5 PPG & 8.3 APG on 47.1% FG with CJ out (4 GP)
- Portland blew a 20-point lead in the 1st Quarter
KEY STATS:
30 PTS, 9 AST, 11-23 FG (48%), 5-11 3P (46%) https://t.co/2X3u8pLSch
Related: Players of the Day
Portland Trail Blazers (101) vs. Houston Rockets (104)
[Highlights] @ROCKETS (-181; $8.44) d. BLAZERS (+181; $10.25) 104-101 [POR +4.5 | u229.5]
Related: Games of the Day
Related: Facts of the Day
NBA Game Reviews: January 28, 2021 by Rob Mason
Even with just four games played, there were still some interesting takeaways and fantastic highlights from Thursday night
A night full of NBA comebacks as Houston won their 4th straight game after overcoming an early 20-pt deficit, a 7-7 FG start for LeBron faded, Clippers almost blew a lead to Miami, and more! https://t.co/qqbsbDSRXh
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) January 29, 2021
Related: Latest PSO Posts
FULL ARTICLE: Most Significant Sports History on January 28th
YEAR: 1990, 1996 & 2001
SIGNIFICANCE: Cowboys AND 49ers won historic Super Bowls AND Ravens won their 1st Championship in franchise history
Related: Significant Sports History
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