The Celtics made it interesting, but the Blazers were able to put the Celtics away with late game execution.
Green Street " Celtics continue road sputter in Portland with loss to Blazers
The Celtics lost for the third time in four games since the All-Star break, falling to Portland, 92-86. Though Boston erased an eight-point fourth-quarter deficit with a 12-4 run that resulted in a Kevin Garnett game-tying layup with 1:46 to go, Damian Lillard responded with a three-point play on a layup just 14 seconds later that put the Blazers ahead for good, as Portland went on to snap its seven-game losing streak.
Rapid Reaction: Blazers 92, Celtics 86 - Boston Celtics Blog - ESPN Boston
After scorching the Suns while putting up 113 points in Friday's win in Phoenix, the Celtics labored in the first half against Portland, shooting a mere 37.8 percent (17 of 45 overall). Green, coming off a 31-point outburst in a spot start against the Suns, missed 6 of 8 shots in the first half, while newcomers Jordan Crawford and Terrence Williams missed all six shots they put up in that same span. Portland shot 51.4 percent (19 of 37 overall), but only led by seven at the intermission. Green finished the game with 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting and was a team-worst minus-17 in plus/minus, while the rest of the bench was a mere 3-of-14 shooting for 8 measly points.
Doc's Take: A 'my bad' game - Boston Celtics Blog - ESPN Boston
"It was one of those, 'My bad,' games, you know?" Rivers told reporters after the game. "I told our guys, we just had so many of them -- 'My faults' -- where we just lost sight of guys, offensive rebounds, timely. We didn't finish any quarter right. Every quarter they made a run. At the end of (the first half), at the end of the fourth quarter, at the end of the third. It was a terrible game, but give them credit. They made some big shots."