PHOENIX — Eric Bledsoe dropped in a rainbow 3-pointer at the overtime buzzer, giving the Phoenix Suns a 118-115 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night.
Bledsoe finished with 20 points, his only 3 being the game-winner. The shot gave the Suns their first win of the season.
The Suns. who made 6 of 10 shots and both free throws in overtime, got 27 points from T.J. Warren and 18 from Alex Len while center Tyson Chandler had 18 rebounds.
Phoenix outscored Portland 62-38 in the paint. The Blazers played the second of back-to-back games after a home loss to Golden State on Tuesday.
The Suns went ahead by six points in overtime, but the Blazers tied it at 115 when Lillard scored and was fouled with 6.4 seconds left.
Lillard’s 27 points led the Blazers, with C.J. McCollum adding 24.
Bledsoe’s layup with 1.1 seconds left in regulation gave the Suns a 103-101 lead, but after a timeout, Mason Plumlee inbounded to Meyers Leonard for a layup at the buzzer to send the game to overtime.
The Blazers took a 90-83 lead midway through the fourth quarter, but the Suns came back to take a 93-92 lead on Warren’s running bank shot with 2:47 to play. McCollum converted a three-point play to give the Blazers the lead again.
Suns guard Devin Booker, who missed Monday’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers with a toe injury, returned to the starting lineup and finished with 15 points on 6-of-15 shooting.
Portland led for much of the second quarter and went ahead 50-43 on Maurice Harkless’ 3-pointer with 4:07 left. The Suns responded by going on a 10-0 run capped off by Bledsoe’s layup and free throw and led 57-53 at halftime.
The Suns went ahead 71-66 in a lackluster third quarter for both teams, only to watch the Blazers tie it at 71 on Evan Turner’s basket and free throw with 1:43 to go in the quarter.
The Suns led 76-73 after three.
TIP-INS
Blazers: C Festus Ezeli remains out with a left knee injury.
Suns: The Suns had been one of the most turnover-prone teams in the NBA, averaging 16 per game entering Wednesday. They committed only ?? against the Blazers
FOCUS ON DEFENSE
Coach Earl Watson believes the Suns can be a top defensive team in the NBA at some point this season. He said analytics showed they were 13th in the league in points allowed per 100 possessions before Monday’s games. “We know we’re going to get better. We understand we just played three of the top four teams in the NBA (Oklahoma City, Golden State, Clippers) so the sample size is too soon to judge,” Watson said before Wednesday’s game. “We believe we can end up top seven easily.”
CULTURAL CELEBRATION
The Suns celebrated Day of the Dead, a traditional Mexican holiday, to honor their Latino fan base Wednesday night. They wore their purple “Los Suns” jerseys, a group of mariachis played the national anthem and fans received “calavera,” or skull head, bobbleheads.
UP NEXT
Blazers: At Dallas on Friday night.
Suns: At New Orleans on Thursday night.
