The [Portland Trail Blazers](https://www.blazersedge.com) scored the game’s first two points, then promptly got down double digits, clawed back by halftime, got down double digits again, and scrapped their way to a late lead to top the Toronto Raptors 105-102.
A 13-0 Blazers run down the stretch proved pivotal, and while there were some drama-filled moments in the game’s final minute, Portland had enough to stay ahead. Matisse Thybulle, playing his first game in nearly a year, fittingly got the game-sealing block on the final play, finishing the game with that block and a pair of steals. Welcome back, Tisse.
[Boxscore](https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401705546)
**Blazer of the Game**
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**Toumani Camara.** More than his three-point shooting (5-10), everything else Camara does defensively gets him the nod on a night where three or four Blazers may have gotten this honor. It sounds a little cliche, but Camara’s vocal defense in the first quarter when the Blazers were falling behind quickly may have been what helped Portland lock in rather than let go of the rope. Camara finished with 21 points on 8-16 shooting, 7 boards, 3 dimes, 2 steals, and 2 blocks with just a single turnover.
**Stat of the Night**
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**7-0:** The number of blocks Portland had compared to Toronto. Beyond Thybulle’s game-sealing no-no, Donovan Clingan had a pair of his own and also deterred quite a few shots at the rim from his presence alone. The Raptors... did not.
**What We’ll Remember**
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**How the game echoed itself.** First half? Blazers go down big, claw back, get a few Anfernee Simons threes at the eight-minute mark of the 2nd quarter, and head in the halftime tied. Second half? Blazers go down big, claw back, get a few Anfernee Simons threes at the eight-minute mark of the 4th quarter, and get the win. Time is indeed a flat circle.
**Crab Dribbles**
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* Shaedon Sharpe had a putback dunk off a Donovan Clingan miss where he elevated so high his head nearly hit the rim. This is barely worth mentioning because we see it so often from him, but it looks cool every time.
* The Blazers ended the first half on a 14-5 run and tied the game on a Deni Avdija three assisted from a nearly-stolen Sharpe crosscourt pass.
* Scoot Henderson was 0-6 with 5 turnovers at halftime, but puzzlingly was a team-best +7 in his 14 minutes. He finished the game 2-12 for 6 turnovers and just 5 points. Not his best night.
* With 2:51 left in the third, Matisse Thybulle checked in for the Blazers for the first time in nearly a year (March 29, 2024).
**Up Next**
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Paul Navarre will drop several hundred thousand pennies on a typewriter and thereby produce our extended recap, and the Blazers stay home for a no-rest game tomorrow against the Washington Wizards Mon. March 17 at 7pm Pacific.