March 6, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Portland Trail Blazers forward Jerami Grant (9) and guard Sidi Sissoko (91) attempt to box out Houston Rockets guard Josh Okogie (20) during the first half at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Image Amen Thompson scored 26 points, powering a vital fourth-quarter rally that gave the Houston Rockets a 106-99 victory over the visiting Portland Trail Blazers on Friday.
After Alperen Sengun, who had a game-high 28 points on 15-for-11 shooting, picked up his fifth foul with 8:29 remaining and the Rockets trailed 89-85, Thompson scored three straight goals to ignite a 15-0 run and gain the decisive momentum. Thompson shot 11 of 12 from the floor and added seven rebounds and seven assists.
Kevin Durant had 20 points and eight rebounds, and his jumper with 15.6 seconds left put the Trail Blazers on the line for good. Portland cut an 11-point deficit to five, with Durant beating the shot clock buzzer on a feed from Thompson and blocking a Portland fast break with a steal on Thompson’s opposite end.
Jerami Grant paced the Trail Blazers with 21 points. Jrue Holiday added 20 points and 10 assists. Donovan Clingan (18 points, 13 rebounds) also had a double-double for Portland, and Toumani Camara also had 16 points, six rebounds and six steals.
There were eight leads changing hands and three ties in the first half of the third quarter. But the Rockets went cold after Dorian Finney-Smith hit a 3-pointer with 6:34 to go for a 75-71 lead. That’s because more than five minutes passed before a Tari Eason tip-in wrapped up the 9-0 Portland run.
Camara and Grant were outstanding in the opening period, and Portland took a 31-18 lead on Camara’s free throw at the 2:40 mark of the frame. The duo combined for 25 points in the first quarter and went 6-for-6 from deep before Kamara missed the buzzer.
Behind Sengun, the Rockets engineered a comeback. A three-point play with 8 minutes and 39 seconds left in the first half tied the game at 39-39, and when Durant converted Thompson’s pass into a dunk, Houston extended its lead to 51-46 with 2 minutes and 52 seconds left in the second half.
Sengun had 19 points at the break and the Rockets scored 38 of their 57 points in the paint.
–Field level media
