Damian Lillard said he wished his performance counted for more than one win after breaking his own franchise scoring record in the Portland Trail Blazers' win over the Golden State Warriors.
Lillard erupted for 61 points, including a career-best 11 three-pointers, as the short-handed Blazers outlasted the equally-depleted Golden State Warriors 129-124 in overtime to round off the NBA's 14-game schedule on Martin Luther King Jr day.
"I'm excited about it, I'm happy about it, but I wish it counted for three wins instead of one," Lillard said.
After setting his new franchise-best total, Lillard knew exactly who held the old mark - he did.
"I guess if somebody is going to beat my record, it is good to be me," Lillard said.
The star guard's previous career high was 60 points earlier this season against Brooklyn, which broke the club record at the time. His 61 points on Monday were the most in the NBA this season.
Lillard became the first player in NBA history with 60-plus points and 10-plus three-pointers in a game, and just the sixth player with multiple 60-point games.
He also had 10 rebounds for his 10th double-double of the season, and he made all 16 of his free throws Hassan Whiteside added 17 points and 21 rebounds for the Blazers (19-26), who snapped a two-game losing skid.
The Blazers trailed by 12 in the third quarter but clawed back in the fourth. Lillard's lay-up and free throw gave Portland a 110-109 lead with 2:26 left, but rookie Eric Paschall dunked to put Golden State back in front with less than a minute to go.
Alec Burks added a pair of free throws to extend Golden State's lead, but Lillard's three-pointer tied it with 14.9 seconds left and the game went to overtime.
The Blazers trailed 121-115 in the extra session before triples from Anfernee Simons and Lillard tied the game again. Gary Trent Jr's lay-up gave Portland the lead with 34.6 seconds to go.
Burks' three-pointer briefly gave the Warriors back the lead, but Lillard and Whiteside each added a pair of free throws to seal it. The crowd stood and cheered as Lillard made the free throw that gave him the record.
Lillard said he knew he had 59 points when he was fouled.
"The guy bumped me and I was like, 'I'm going down'. They are going to have to blow this whistle and I'm getting these two free throws. And that was it," he said.
Blazers coach Terry Stotts said Lillard carried the team, not only on the court but in huddles, timeouts and at half-time.
"You run out of adjectives," Stotts said. "He's an amazing player."
"He is a great player," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said of Lillard. "He is an All-Star that has had a million big shots in his career, so none of it was surprising. You just take it for granted with him."