tlongII
02-02-2011, 11:28 AM
http://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/index.ssf/2011/02/portland_99_san_antonio_86_lam.html
http://media.oregonlive.com/blazers_impact/photo/aldridgespursjpeg-5275c089fa329a6c.jpeg
The Blazers' LaMarcus Aldridge (12) had a career-high 40 points in a victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night at the Rose Garden.
Trail Blazers 99, San Antonio Spurs 86.
And, no, Rip City, there's no need to rub your eyes. That's not a misprint.
In one of their most impressive, imposing and emphatic performances of this injury-riddled season, the Trail Blazers rode a dominant, career night from LaMarcus Aldridge to victory over the NBA's best team before a rocking, sellout crowd of 20,364 at the Rose Garden.
After a mini two-game slump, Aldridge exploded Tuesday night, finishing with a career-high 40 points, 11 rebounds and three steals. And he did it all against his boyhood idol, Tim Duncan.
In fact, although the debate over Aldridge's All-Star credentials will linger for roughly 48 more hours -- the reserves are announced Thursday -- you can count the perennial All-Star Duncan as a supporter after a dominant, do-everything night from Aldridge.
"Absolutely," Duncan said, when asked if Aldridge was an All-Star. "I'd vote for him. He's a forward, right? Yeah, I'd vote for him."
It's no wonder after Duncan watched Aldridge make 16 of 23 field goals through a variety of defensive looks. Aldridge started hot, scoring 16 of the Blazers' 24 first-quarter points -- scoring 14 of 16 Blazers points during one stretch. And he ended just as torrid, putting up 13 points in the pivotal fourth.
From beginning to end, Aldridge flashed his entire repertoire, mixing bullish post moves with alley dunks and midrange jumpers. And the Spurs had no answer.
It was the 21st time in franchise history a player has scored 40 or more points for the Blazers and the first since March 11 of last season, when Brandon Roy had 41 against the Golden State Warriors.
"Double-double and 40 points in a win against the best team in the league?" Wesley Matthews said. "There's not much more you can say about that. That's All-Star."
Despite the onslaught, through one half of play, it seemed as if the game would be defined by San Antonio offensive rebounds and second-chance points. The Blazers (26-22) held the Spurs' plethora of weapons in check for long stretches, but DeJuan Blair was a beast on the offensive glass -- he had six in the first half -- which helped the Spurs rack up 13 by halftime.
The stout rebounding advantage led to a staggering 22 second-chance points -- and a 52-47 lead -- in the first half.
But things instantly changed at the start of the second half. The Spurs missed their first two field goals -- with no offensive rebounds -- and committed a turnover to start the third quarter. Meanwhile, the Blazers got back-to-back baskets from Matthews and Aldridge.
It wasn't an eye-popping moment, but Matthews said it made all the difference.
"We brought the fight at the start of the second half," Matthews said. "We executed two straight times on the same play. That's big time for us. They had a five-point lead, we cut it to one in two possessions. We kind of rode that momentum."
The Blazers went toe-to-toe with the Spurs for much of the third quarter and took over with a dominant fourth. The turning point came roughly four minutes into the final quarter when the Blazers began a 14-2 run that gave them a 92-80 lead with 2:55 remaining.
They led by as many as 16 points and outscored the Spurs 28-15 in a dominant final quarter that all but put to rest all those disastrous early-season late-game meltdowns.
"We weathered the storm," said Matthews, who had 11 fourth-quarter points. "They're going to make plays. We can't hang our heads. We did a better job of being team-oriented on defense and being active, being aggressive. Activity and aggressiveness will cover up mistakes."
Throughout the game, the Blazers flashed a rugged, effective defense. They held point guard Tony Parker in check from the get-go -- he was scoreless until the final seconds of the first half -- and finished with just six points on 3-of-11 shooting. Manu Ginobili had 17 points, but made just 6 of 18 shots.
Once the Blazers stopped allowing so many offensive rebounds, their defense became the difference. And the Spurs (40-8), who had won 11 of their last 12 games, folded.
"Two or three of our guys had really poor games because of the aggressiveness and the defense that Portland exhibited out there," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "They went and took the game in the second half and we folded to some degree."
Andre Miller quietly upstaged the more acclaimed Parker, finishing with 18 points and nine assists, and Matthews added 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting. The Blazers, who entered the game ranked third-to-last in field goal shooting percentage (43.8), shot 50.7 percent from the field.
Notes: Aldridge is averaging 25.7 points and 10.3 rebounds since Dec. 15. He's the first Blazers player to finish with at least 40 points and 10 rebounds in a game since Zach Randolph did it March 17, 2007. ... The Blazers have won six of their last seven games against the Spurs. ... The Blazers ended the game with a 21-8 run and allowed just 34 second-half points. ... Blair finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds. ... NBA Development League callup Chris Johnson played in his first NBA game, finishing with two points and two rebounds in 4:14.
http://media.oregonlive.com/blazers_impact/photo/aldridgespursjpeg-5275c089fa329a6c.jpeg
The Blazers' LaMarcus Aldridge (12) had a career-high 40 points in a victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night at the Rose Garden.
Trail Blazers 99, San Antonio Spurs 86.
And, no, Rip City, there's no need to rub your eyes. That's not a misprint.
In one of their most impressive, imposing and emphatic performances of this injury-riddled season, the Trail Blazers rode a dominant, career night from LaMarcus Aldridge to victory over the NBA's best team before a rocking, sellout crowd of 20,364 at the Rose Garden.
After a mini two-game slump, Aldridge exploded Tuesday night, finishing with a career-high 40 points, 11 rebounds and three steals. And he did it all against his boyhood idol, Tim Duncan.
In fact, although the debate over Aldridge's All-Star credentials will linger for roughly 48 more hours -- the reserves are announced Thursday -- you can count the perennial All-Star Duncan as a supporter after a dominant, do-everything night from Aldridge.
"Absolutely," Duncan said, when asked if Aldridge was an All-Star. "I'd vote for him. He's a forward, right? Yeah, I'd vote for him."
It's no wonder after Duncan watched Aldridge make 16 of 23 field goals through a variety of defensive looks. Aldridge started hot, scoring 16 of the Blazers' 24 first-quarter points -- scoring 14 of 16 Blazers points during one stretch. And he ended just as torrid, putting up 13 points in the pivotal fourth.
From beginning to end, Aldridge flashed his entire repertoire, mixing bullish post moves with alley dunks and midrange jumpers. And the Spurs had no answer.
It was the 21st time in franchise history a player has scored 40 or more points for the Blazers and the first since March 11 of last season, when Brandon Roy had 41 against the Golden State Warriors.
"Double-double and 40 points in a win against the best team in the league?" Wesley Matthews said. "There's not much more you can say about that. That's All-Star."
Despite the onslaught, through one half of play, it seemed as if the game would be defined by San Antonio offensive rebounds and second-chance points. The Blazers (26-22) held the Spurs' plethora of weapons in check for long stretches, but DeJuan Blair was a beast on the offensive glass -- he had six in the first half -- which helped the Spurs rack up 13 by halftime.
The stout rebounding advantage led to a staggering 22 second-chance points -- and a 52-47 lead -- in the first half.
But things instantly changed at the start of the second half. The Spurs missed their first two field goals -- with no offensive rebounds -- and committed a turnover to start the third quarter. Meanwhile, the Blazers got back-to-back baskets from Matthews and Aldridge.
It wasn't an eye-popping moment, but Matthews said it made all the difference.
"We brought the fight at the start of the second half," Matthews said. "We executed two straight times on the same play. That's big time for us. They had a five-point lead, we cut it to one in two possessions. We kind of rode that momentum."
The Blazers went toe-to-toe with the Spurs for much of the third quarter and took over with a dominant fourth. The turning point came roughly four minutes into the final quarter when the Blazers began a 14-2 run that gave them a 92-80 lead with 2:55 remaining.
They led by as many as 16 points and outscored the Spurs 28-15 in a dominant final quarter that all but put to rest all those disastrous early-season late-game meltdowns.
"We weathered the storm," said Matthews, who had 11 fourth-quarter points. "They're going to make plays. We can't hang our heads. We did a better job of being team-oriented on defense and being active, being aggressive. Activity and aggressiveness will cover up mistakes."
Throughout the game, the Blazers flashed a rugged, effective defense. They held point guard Tony Parker in check from the get-go -- he was scoreless until the final seconds of the first half -- and finished with just six points on 3-of-11 shooting. Manu Ginobili had 17 points, but made just 6 of 18 shots.
Once the Blazers stopped allowing so many offensive rebounds, their defense became the difference. And the Spurs (40-8), who had won 11 of their last 12 games, folded.
"Two or three of our guys had really poor games because of the aggressiveness and the defense that Portland exhibited out there," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "They went and took the game in the second half and we folded to some degree."
Andre Miller quietly upstaged the more acclaimed Parker, finishing with 18 points and nine assists, and Matthews added 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting. The Blazers, who entered the game ranked third-to-last in field goal shooting percentage (43.8), shot 50.7 percent from the field.
Notes: Aldridge is averaging 25.7 points and 10.3 rebounds since Dec. 15. He's the first Blazers player to finish with at least 40 points and 10 rebounds in a game since Zach Randolph did it March 17, 2007. ... The Blazers have won six of their last seven games against the Spurs. ... The Blazers ended the game with a 21-8 run and allowed just 34 second-half points. ... Blair finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds. ... NBA Development League callup Chris Johnson played in his first NBA game, finishing with two points and two rebounds in 4:14.