Blazers’ Damian Lillard hasn’t been pleased by lack of foul calls vs. Warriors

The Portland Trail Blazers quickly fell into a 0-3 hole in the Western Conference Finals against the Golden State Warriors.

It was a contest that saw them fall short in the fourth quarter after Damian Lillard was stripped by Andre Iguodala on the final play of regulation. Following the game, Lillard voiced his frustration with the lack of fouls called by the referees, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.

“I know it’s a tough position for the referees to be in to make a call at that point in the game,” said Lillard, who finished with 23 points but didn’t score in the final 7 minutes, 42 seconds. “Tried to get a little bit of space the first time. He grabbed my arm, and I lost the ball a little bit. I regained it, and I was going to shoot it again. He got his hand on the ball.

“For me, as the offensive player, I felt like it was contact. There was a lot of contact. But obviously, the ref is not going to decide the game or jump in at that point. You know, so … good defensive play.”

It was a play that could have easily gone either way due to the amount of contact that was allowed by the referees. It should be noted that Iguodala stated that he expected a foul to be called on the play and was a bit surprised there was no whistle blown.

Nonetheless, the Blazers blew a prime opportunity to split the series before it heads to the Moda Center for Games 3 and 4. They held a 17-point advantage at halftime, but all that was erased in the third quarter by the Warriors.

Ultimately, Game 3 will be a chance for the Blazers to get back into the series against Golden State.