LOS ANGELES -- It wasn't a matter of if Portland would catch the Denver Nuggets but when, Trail Blazers guard Allen Crabbe said.

"We always believed that we would (catch the Nuggets). We knew we would be in this position, so now we're looking forward to this game (against Denver on Tuesday)," Crabbe said.

Damian Lillard led the way with 22 points, and the Trail Blazers cruised past the Los Angeles Lakers 97-81 on Sunday night at Staples Center.

Crabbe added 18 points and CJ McCollum contributed 13 as the Trail Blazers (35-38) beat the Lakers for the 12th consecutive time. Portland has won seven in a row over Los Angeles at Staples.

The win allowed the Trail Blazers to tie the Denver Nuggets for eighth place in the Western Conference race with nine games remaining for both clubs. Denver lost 115-90 to the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday.

The Trail Blazers host the Nuggets on Tuesday night.

"It's a good feeling knowing that we got to the position that we wanted to get to, being in the driver's seat," Crabbe said. "Our work is just getting started."

The Trail Blazers are 11-3 in March after experiencing a troublesome first half of the season.

"We wanted to get to this point at the All-Star break and we knew this Denver game would be an important game," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "Like I told the team, we put ourselves in a good position, but our hardest work is ahead of us."

D'Angelo Russell scored 22 points to lead the Lakers, who lost for the seventh time in eight games and the 15th in the 17 games. Tyler Ennis had 14 points, and Jordan Clarkson and Ivica Zubac chipped in 10 each for Los Angeles (21-52).

"I think everyone was in the position to score and make plays on the offensive end. We just didn't take advantage of it," said Russell, who made 8 of 19 shots from the field and 1 of 4 from long distance. "I guess I made shots, but I didn't really think I did too well either. We'll get in the gym and bounce back."

Lakers forward Julius Randle had an off night offensively, scoring four points on 2-of-7 shooting. Randle grabbed nine rebounds.

"They just got a little hot," Randle said of the Blazers. "Guys made shots and we struggled all day offensively to make shots. It's tough."

Lakers rookie forward Brandon Ingram missed the game with tendinitis in his right knee. Corey Brewer started in his place and scored only three points in 19 minutes.

The teams had trouble generating much on offense in the first half, with both shooting 32.6 percent. However, the Trail Blazers grabbed a 40-32 lead at the break.

Overall, Portland shot 40.4 percent to 39.3 percent for the Lakers.

"I'm just glad we came back and played a better second half," Stotts said. "We have been on a good roll offensively, but we didn't do a very good job offensively. Some of it was poor shooting, but part of it was we just weren't playing our style."

In the third quarter, a dunk by Randle closed the gap to 51-46 with 7:16 remaining in the quarter, but Portland responded with a 23-7 surge for 74-53 advantage after a 3-point basket by Lillard with 2:10 left.

Lillard's 14 points in the third helped the Trail Blazers carry a 77-56 lead into the fourth quarter.

"We got big stops and we started making shots and blew the game wide open," Crabbe said.

Stotts said Portland's offense finally came alive in the third quarter.

"I thought our defense was solid the entire game," Stotts said. "The first half they had 32 points. I thought for the most part we were pretty on point with our defense. They made some pretty good plays, but I thought that it was our offense that turned things around."

Portland won the rebounding battle 61-42, including a 12-1 edge on the offensive end.

NOTES: The Blazers, who defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night, are 5-5 in the second game of back-to-backs on the road. ... The 32 first-half points by the Lakers were their lowest of the season. ... Lakers G Jordan Clarkson injured his right hand in the first half but returned. However, it seemed to impact his shooting. Clarkson hit 3 of 4 for seven points in the first quarter but managed three points the rest of the way by making just 1 of 12 shots. ... Portland F Ed Davis (left shoulder) missed his 13th game. ... The Lakers face the visiting Washington Wizards on Tuesday.