Deni Avdija’s late heroics lift Blazers past Suns, into playoffs

Deni Avdija scored 41 points, and his three-point play with 16.1 seconds remaining capped the Portland Trail Blazers’ comeback from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit for a 114-110 victory over the host Phoenix Suns in a play-in game.

The Trail Blazers ended a four-year playoff drought and will open a best-of-seven Western Conference playoff series against the No. 2 seed San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.

Jordan Goodwin sank a reserve layup with 32.5 seconds left to put the Suns up 110-109, but he missed a free throw after being fouled on the play. The Blazers rebounded and called timeout to set up Avdija’s drive through the lane.

Phoenix’s Jalen Green missed a 3-point attempt with six seconds remaining. On the rebound, Portland’s Matisse Thybulle stole the ball from Goodwin and found Jerami Grant alone for a dunk with six-tenths of a second remaining.

Avdija had 14 points in the fourth quarter, and he finished with 12 assists and seven rebounds.