THE Portland Trail Blazers put up a valiant effort for nearly three quarters Friday night at the Moda Center against the far superior Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Blazers shot well – even from three-point range – and aggressively went after the NBA’s top-rated defense. But in the end, the difference between the championship-contending Thunder and the likely lottery-bound Blazers led to the expected result.

The Thunder dominated the final six minutes of the third quarter, taking a 21-point lead early in the fourth quarter and earning a 137-114 victory.

But the Blazers deserve some credit. They fell behind early before rallying in the second quarter to force a 68-68 tie at halftime. The Thunder led 80-78 with 5:43 left in the third quarter.

Scoring 68 points in one half against a team with an NBA-best 91.3 defensive rating was absolutely impressive. Especially since Deandre Ayton and Anfernee Simons struggled to combine for 14 points at halftime.

Jerami Grant, Deni Avdija and Rayan Rupert took over with 34 combined points.

But the magic didn’t last. The Blazers committed 12 turnovers in the third quarter which led to 19 points for the Thunder.

Grant led the Blazers with 17 points and Ayton scored 14. Simons went 1 of 8 from the field for nine points but had six assists.

The Blazers committed 19 turnovers on the night to help dilute the impact of their 42.9 percent three-point shooting (15 of 35).

The Thunder shot 53.7% from the field and 38.8% from three (19 of 49).

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 30 points on 12-of-18 shooting and added six assists. Forward Jalen Williams added 22 points. Chet Holmgren had an off night with six points.

WHAT THIS MEANS

The Blazers (2-4) are chasing what the Thunder (5-0) has become. Just three seasons ago, Oklahoma City won 24 games. Today, it is an elite team with a young and loaded squad. So there’s no shame in the Blazers losing. However, they have now lost 13 straight games against the Thunder.

Portland’s last win in the series came on April 3, 2021 at home.

HOT RUPERT

Rayan Rupert, who scored three points in the fourth quarter of the team’s 106-105 win Wednesday night over the LA Clippers, shot 4 of 6 from long range against the Thunder while scoring 14 points off the bench.

SECOND QUARTER RALLY

The Blazers trailed by 17 points in the first quarter and 50-35 with 8:03 left in the first half. Then they outscored the Thunder 33-18 for the rest of the game.

The Blazers cut their deficit to 63-53 with 2:34 left in the quarter before Toumani Camara hit his third three-pointer of the half.

Simons made his first and only three of the game to cut the Thunder’s lead to 63-59 with 1:50 on the clock.

Grant scored a three-pointer, then following a Camara steal, Deni Avdija drove to the basket in transition, scored with his left hand and fouled Holmgren to make it 65-64.

Avdija missed her free throw, but Ayton grabbed the rebound and hit a short jumper to give the Blazers a 66-65 lead with 37 seconds remaining.

The Blazers got another stop, leading to a Scoot Henderson drive and score. But Williams finished the half with a three to tie the game at 68-68.

The Blazers shot 63% for the quarter, including 7 of 11 threes. Rupert made three in four attempts.

FOLLOWING

The Blazers play at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Phoenix Suns (4-1).