Shaedon Sharpe scored 24 points, and the Portland Trail Blazers pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat the Atlanta Hawks 117-101 on Thursday night despite playing without leading scorer Deni Avdija.
Avdija missed his second straight game with lower-back soreness. He entered the night averaging 26.1 points, 7.1 rebounds and 6.9 assists, but Portland was able to rally behind a balanced effort.
The Trail Blazers carried a slim 88-87 lead into the fourth quarter and then took control down the stretch. Portland snapped a two-game skid after winning five straight prior to the brief slide.
Jerami Grant finished with 16 points, Rayan Rupert added 13, and Jrue Holiday scored 12 in his third game back after missing 27 contests with a right calf injury.
Onyeka Okongwu led Atlanta with 26 points, while CJ McCollum scored 20 in his third game with the Hawks since being acquired from Washington in the trade that sent Trae Young to the Wizards. McCollum spent the first eight and a half seasons of his NBA career in Portland.
The Hawks, who went 1-3 on their four-game road trip, have now lost nine straight games in Portland dating back to Feb. 13, 2017. Atlanta also played without Kristaps Porzingis, who missed his fourth consecutive game with an Achilles issue.
Up next:
The Hawks return home to host Boston on Saturday night, while the Trail Blazers host the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night.
