tlongII
11-22-2008, 12:23 PM
http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2008/11/blazers_beat_kings_in_second_s.html
SACRAMENTO -- Midway through the fourth quarter, in what would normally be crunch time, All-Star guard Brandon Roy meandered over to the scorers table during a timeout and wondered aloud to reporters why one of the Trail Blazers' all-time clutch players was not in the game.
"What, are they gonna trade me?" he joked, before flashing a smile.
Yes, Friday was another one of those nights for the ascending Blazers as they delivered their second consecutive blowout victory, hammering the Sacramento Kings 117-96 before 12,056 at Arco Arena.
The 21-point margin of victory -- one game after a 42-point win over the Chicago Bulls -- gave the Blazers their first back-to-back wins by 20 or more points since 2000 and nearly provided the most decisive victory in Sacramento (22 points in 1992) in franchise history.
A 6-0 run in the final 42.9 seconds prevented the Blazers from reaching that mark, so, instead, the hot-shooting Blazers (8-5) settled for a slew of season bests.
They made their most three-pointers (14), missing the franchise record by two, and scored their most points. Much of the damage came during a decisive third quarter in which the Blazers scored 37 points -- another season high -- and built a 94-65 lead.
"What a big third quarter by our guys," Blazers coach Nate McMillan said. "We came out very aggressive pushing the ball. We made our shots. Defensively, we were getting stops and we quit turning the ball over.
"We've done some good things in the last two games. It's still November and we still have to keep working. There's room for improvement. But I like our intensity and I like our aggressive play."
There were seemingly too many bright spots to highlight them all, but two of the brightest sparkled from Steve Blake and -- finally -- LaMarcus Aldridge. Blake, one game after running headfirst into a photographer, cutting his head and receiving three stitches, carried the Blazers early with breathtaking shooting, and Aldridge gained some momentum afterward.
Blake finished with a season-high-tying 20 points, thanks to a career-high six three-pointers. In an illustration of just how good things went for the Blazers on Friday night, Blake's record-setter came with 7:32 left in the third quarter on a disjointed play, just before the shot clock buzzer sounded, and with McMillan yelling "Shoot it" from the sideline. It gave the Blazers their first double-digit lead at 69-58.
Blake, who has made 11 of his last 20 three-pointers over the past five games, finished 6 of 10 from three-point range and added five assists.
"He's really shooting that three-ball well and ... it makes us a more dangerous team," Roy said. "Now teams are having to play LaMarcus straight up because you say, 'Who do you double off of? Who do you leave?' As long as we can continue to score and be aggressive on the perimeter, it's going to put a lot of pressure on teams to have to play our big men straight up. And we have two really good offensive big men."
Blake's shooting helped one of these big men -- Aldridge -- break out of his worst slump of the early season. Aldridge entered the game having made 9 of his last 27 field goals and averaging 7.0 points over his last three games.
During a second-quarter surge that lasted just over two minutes, Aldridge scoring 11 consecutive Blazers points. Displaying post moves, jump hooks and jumpers, Aldridge toyed with second-year Kings player Spencer Hawes, carried the Blazers during a pivotal point before halftime and finally enjoyed an offensive outburst to smile about.
"I was just excited," said Aldridge, who finished with 19 points, six rebounds and three assists. "They weren't double-teaming me; they were giving me room to play. I've seen so many double teams and I've seen people load up on me so much lately, that I really haven't seen that much room in a while. It felt good."
It was perhaps the most meaningful development on a night of superlatives. Another positive of the convincing victory, in which the Blazers led by 29, was that McMillan could rest some of this players.
No starter played more than 3:08 in the fourth quarter, including Roy, who did not play at all.
Which leads back to his fourth-quarter joke. When asked if he had any news about that "trade," Roy, sitting with his feet in an ice bucket, in the middle of a boisterous, happy-go-lucky locker room, said things were pending.
"It's in talks right now, in negotiations," he said, laughing. "We haven't set up the principles yet."
Notes:The Blazers, who entered Friday night's game leading the NBA in three-point shooting, made 14 of 26 threes against the Kings and shot 55.6percent from the field overall. Through three quarters, they were shooting better than 60 percent. ... Joel Przybilla registered his first double double of the season (10 points and 10 rebounds). ... Roy finished with 16 points on 6 of 8 shooting and Travis Outlaw (15 points, 3 of 4 three-pointers), and Rudy Fernandez (14 points, 4 of 6 three-pointers) excelled off the bench.
SACRAMENTO -- Midway through the fourth quarter, in what would normally be crunch time, All-Star guard Brandon Roy meandered over to the scorers table during a timeout and wondered aloud to reporters why one of the Trail Blazers' all-time clutch players was not in the game.
"What, are they gonna trade me?" he joked, before flashing a smile.
Yes, Friday was another one of those nights for the ascending Blazers as they delivered their second consecutive blowout victory, hammering the Sacramento Kings 117-96 before 12,056 at Arco Arena.
The 21-point margin of victory -- one game after a 42-point win over the Chicago Bulls -- gave the Blazers their first back-to-back wins by 20 or more points since 2000 and nearly provided the most decisive victory in Sacramento (22 points in 1992) in franchise history.
A 6-0 run in the final 42.9 seconds prevented the Blazers from reaching that mark, so, instead, the hot-shooting Blazers (8-5) settled for a slew of season bests.
They made their most three-pointers (14), missing the franchise record by two, and scored their most points. Much of the damage came during a decisive third quarter in which the Blazers scored 37 points -- another season high -- and built a 94-65 lead.
"What a big third quarter by our guys," Blazers coach Nate McMillan said. "We came out very aggressive pushing the ball. We made our shots. Defensively, we were getting stops and we quit turning the ball over.
"We've done some good things in the last two games. It's still November and we still have to keep working. There's room for improvement. But I like our intensity and I like our aggressive play."
There were seemingly too many bright spots to highlight them all, but two of the brightest sparkled from Steve Blake and -- finally -- LaMarcus Aldridge. Blake, one game after running headfirst into a photographer, cutting his head and receiving three stitches, carried the Blazers early with breathtaking shooting, and Aldridge gained some momentum afterward.
Blake finished with a season-high-tying 20 points, thanks to a career-high six three-pointers. In an illustration of just how good things went for the Blazers on Friday night, Blake's record-setter came with 7:32 left in the third quarter on a disjointed play, just before the shot clock buzzer sounded, and with McMillan yelling "Shoot it" from the sideline. It gave the Blazers their first double-digit lead at 69-58.
Blake, who has made 11 of his last 20 three-pointers over the past five games, finished 6 of 10 from three-point range and added five assists.
"He's really shooting that three-ball well and ... it makes us a more dangerous team," Roy said. "Now teams are having to play LaMarcus straight up because you say, 'Who do you double off of? Who do you leave?' As long as we can continue to score and be aggressive on the perimeter, it's going to put a lot of pressure on teams to have to play our big men straight up. And we have two really good offensive big men."
Blake's shooting helped one of these big men -- Aldridge -- break out of his worst slump of the early season. Aldridge entered the game having made 9 of his last 27 field goals and averaging 7.0 points over his last three games.
During a second-quarter surge that lasted just over two minutes, Aldridge scoring 11 consecutive Blazers points. Displaying post moves, jump hooks and jumpers, Aldridge toyed with second-year Kings player Spencer Hawes, carried the Blazers during a pivotal point before halftime and finally enjoyed an offensive outburst to smile about.
"I was just excited," said Aldridge, who finished with 19 points, six rebounds and three assists. "They weren't double-teaming me; they were giving me room to play. I've seen so many double teams and I've seen people load up on me so much lately, that I really haven't seen that much room in a while. It felt good."
It was perhaps the most meaningful development on a night of superlatives. Another positive of the convincing victory, in which the Blazers led by 29, was that McMillan could rest some of this players.
No starter played more than 3:08 in the fourth quarter, including Roy, who did not play at all.
Which leads back to his fourth-quarter joke. When asked if he had any news about that "trade," Roy, sitting with his feet in an ice bucket, in the middle of a boisterous, happy-go-lucky locker room, said things were pending.
"It's in talks right now, in negotiations," he said, laughing. "We haven't set up the principles yet."
Notes:The Blazers, who entered Friday night's game leading the NBA in three-point shooting, made 14 of 26 threes against the Kings and shot 55.6percent from the field overall. Through three quarters, they were shooting better than 60 percent. ... Joel Przybilla registered his first double double of the season (10 points and 10 rebounds). ... Roy finished with 16 points on 6 of 8 shooting and Travis Outlaw (15 points, 3 of 4 three-pointers), and Rudy Fernandez (14 points, 4 of 6 three-pointers) excelled off the bench.