Blazers try to explain why they lost to Eric Paschall-led Warriors

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Monday night was supposed to be a breeze for the Portland Trail Blazers. After being swept by the Warriors last season in the Western Conference finals, Oakland native Damian Lillard and the rest of his teammates were expected to blow by the injury-plagued Dubs in San Francisco. 

That's far from what happened, however. Warriors rookie Eric Paschall stole the show on his 23rd birthday, scoring 34 points while pulling down 13 rebounds in Golden State's 127-118 win over Portland at Chase Center.

Lillard believes the Blazers need to look in the mirror after losing to a Warriors team without Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and D'Angelo Russell. 

“Knowing how shorthanded they were as far as their main guys being out and still being beat, it’s a wakeup call that you got to come correct in the NBA," Lillard said to reporters after the game, via NBC Sports Northwest's Jamie Hudson. "You can get beat on any given night regardless of who’s on the floor."

Paschall had to be a bit of a surprise to a veteran-led Portland team. The second-round draft pick from this past June now has scored at least 25 points in back-to-back games. Still, this isn't Steph or even D-Lo, it's understandable why the Blazers' defense might have given the young forward a little more leeway than a known commodity. 

[RELATED: Paschall grabs attention of world with big night in Warriors' win]

Blazers coach Terry Stotts says his team prepared for Paschall, but he likely didn't expect such a dominant performance.

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“We watched film on him, but he shot the ball really well,” Stotts said. “I don’t know if he is that good of a shooter or not, but tonight he was.” 

Portland is bound to get its revenge on Golden State at some point, but for now, it's another win in the books for the Warriors over the Blazers, no matter who's on the court.

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