Where Blazers Stand After Beating Bucks

The Portland Trail Blazers are back at .500 after beating the Milwaukee Bucks by a score of 130-99 inside the Moda Center.

The Blazers came out of the gate strong with 42 points in the first quarter that gave them a double-digit lead going into the second. That start set the Blazers on a path towards success throughout the game, and the lead just kept growing throughout the night.

With the win, the Blazers achieved a better record than last season and moved back to .500 for the first time since late January.

Blazers Cruise to Win vs. Bucks

Milwaukee Bucks guard Andre Jackson Jr. drives to the basket against Portland Trail Blazers guard Matisse Thybulle | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

The Blazers had a balanced offensive attack in their win against the Bucks. Seven players finished in double figures, including Scoot Henderson, who was the leading scorer with 23 points. Deni Avdija and Jerami Grant had 18 points each. Matisse Thybulle and Donovan Clingan added 14 points each, and Jrue Holiday had 13 of his own. Toumani Camara also joined in on the action with 10 points in 24 minutes.

The Bucks had an electric offensive performance from point guard Ryan Rollins, who scored a career-high 36 points on 13 of 26 shooting from the floor with six 3-pointers. Ousmane Dieng had 16, while Taurean Prince dropped 13 off the bench. Jericho Sims added 12 to the box score for the Bucs.

Why Blazers Win Was Significant

The Blazers could have jumped back into eighth place with the win, but the Los Angeles Clippers also pulled out a victory against the Toronto Raptors at home. The Blazers also could have added some cushion from the Golden State Warriors, but they were able to beat the Brooklyn Nets at home.

As of now, the Blazers are currently 3.5 games behind the Phoenix Suns for the seventh spot, half a game behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the eighth spot, and 1.5 games ahead of the Warriors for the tenth spot.

While the Blazers are chasing other teams in the Western Conference playoff picture, they are still running their own race. They need to win as many games as possible on their end in hopes of getting either the seventh or eighth spot in the standings. That will give them two chances to advance in the play-in tournament, as opposed to one, including at least one home game before possible elimination.

Their next game comes against the Dallas Mavericks tomorrow at 7 p.m. PT.