The Associated Press
PORTLAND, Ore.—There was no stopping Al-Farouq Aminu last night.
Aminu slammed down a fast-break running dunk to set a career high for points and tie the game at 81.
He yelled and flexed on the baseline, baring his teeth, clenching his fists, and ran back down the court—slapping the hands of his teammates who jumped off the bench to celebrate.
Aminu scored a career-best 28 points, including a career-high six three-pointers, as the Portland Trail Blazers extended their winning streak at home to a season-high six games with a 116-109 victory over the Boston Celtics.
“He turned the game around for us,” said teammate Damian Lillard.
“For a guy that hadn’t been shooting the ball great on a lot of those three-point shots, tonight when we needed him, he rose up and knocked them down pretty much every time.”
In some ways, Aminu said this performance was a long time coming.
He has played in the NBA for six years and has worn four different jerseys, but has never had a game like this.
With only six regular-season games remaining, Portland (40-31) holds the sixth seed in the West.
Boston (39-37) entered as the East’s fourth seed but fell to sixth with the loss.
The Toronto Raptors clinched their third-straight Atlantic Division title with Boston’s defeat.
