Who's Playing
Matchup: Toronto Raptors vs. Portland Trail Blazers
Records: Raptors (45-17); Trail Blazers (38-23)
Where to Watch
Date: March 1
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
TV: Sportsnet One
Radio: TSN Radio 1050
Location: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON
Game Preview
Toronto closes out a six-game homestand Friday night when they host Portland, who are on the back end of a seven-game road trip. The Blazers are 4-0 on the trip so far and are winners of five straight overall – their last loss came to the Thunder on Feb. 11.
Interestingly enough, both Portland (Wednesday) and Toronto (Tuesday) are coming off wins over Boston.
It is the second and final meeting of the 2018-19 regular season between the two teams – 24 points from Damian Lillard led the Blazers to a six-point win home over the Raptors on Dec. 14.
This season, Lillard has played at an All-NBA level, averaging 26.0 points, 6.4 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game while hitting 36.6 percent of his 7.8 3-point attempts per game. CJ McCollum is the team's second-leading scorer at 21.0 points per game while Jusuf Nurkic rounds out Portland's big three with averages of 15.4 points and 10.1 rebounds per contest.
The Blazers have also added Enes Kanter and Rodney Hood to bolster their second unit, adding much-needed size and perimeter scoring. Though Kanter did not make the trip to Canada, he has been impactful in his first four games with Portland, averaging 12.8 points and 7.5 rebounds in 19.4 minutes per game. Hood has averaged 6.5 points through his first eight games as a Blazer.
Toronto looks to maintain pace with Milwaukee for first place in the East with a win, while Portland has used their recent streak to move to fourth in the West.
The Blazers are 14-15 on the road this season while the Raptors are 26-6 at Scotiabank Arena.
Notes
The Raptors have won six of the last seven meetings with the Blazers, including three straight at home.
Toronto has won 17 games against Western Conference opponents this season – a figure tied with the Sixers for the most victories among Eastern Conference teams.
The Trail Blazers are 8-0 against Atlantic Division opponents this season (Boston, Brooklyn, New York, Philadelphia, Toronto) and 18-4 against Eastern Conference opponents. The 18 wins over Eastern Conference teams is the most among all teams in the West.
In the first meeting between the two team's Portland's bench outscored Toronto's reserves 58-26. The Blazers' second unit was led by 16 points from Zach Collins and 13 points from Seth Curry.
Enes Kanter (not with team) and Evan Turner (left knee) will both miss Friday night's game for the Trail Blazers.
Fred VanVleet (left thumb) remains out for the Raptors.
Last Time They Played
Date: Dec. 14, 2018
Score: Trail Blazers 128, Raptors 122
Raptors: Kawhi Leonard – 28 points, six rebounds, four assists
Trail Blazers: Damian Lillard – 24 points (8-for-10 FG), four assists, one steal