Trail Blazers advance

Portland is in the playoffs after beating Phoenix 114-110 on Tuesday, April 14, to grab the Western Conference’s No. 7 seed. (nba.com) The win sent the Trail Blazers into a first-round series against San Antonio, with Game 1 listed for Sunday, April 19, on the league schedule. Phoenix dropped into the final West play-in game instead of being eliminated that night. (espn.com) Deni Avdija finished with 41 points, seven rebounds and 12 assists, and Jalen Green added 35 points in Portland’s comeback. The Associated Press game report said Avdija’s go-ahead three-point play came with 16.1 seconds left after the Trail Blazers erased an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit. (nba.com) (cbssports.com) The play-in tournament fills the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds in each conference with teams that finished seventh through 10th in the regular season. In that format, the loser of the 7-versus-8 game gets one more chance at the playoffs against the winner of the 9-versus-10 game. (nba.com) That is why Phoenix still has a path into the bracket even after losing to Portland. The Suns are scheduled to host Golden State on Friday, April 17, with the winner taking the West’s No. 8 seed and a first-round matchup with top-seeded Oklahoma City. (usatoday.com) (espn.com) Golden State reached that game by beating the Los Angeles Clippers 126-121 in the 9-versus-10 matchup on April 15. The official postseason schedule lists the play-in round from April 14 through April 17, with the first round starting April 18. (espn.com) (nba.com) For Portland, the April 14 result ended the play-in immediately and turned a one-possession finish into a playoff berth. For Phoenix, the margin was the difference between locking in a series and needing one more win on Friday to keep its season alive. (nba.com) (usatoday.com)