tlongII
04-22-2014, 10:07 AM
http://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/index.ssf/2014/04/trail_blazers_beat_houston_rockets_with_help_from. html
HOUSTON — From Day 1 of training camp, the knock on the Trail Blazers has been the same.
They have a nice little nucleus of talent. They feature a dynamic and fun-to-watch offense. But in the end, when the playoffs arrive, they will be dogged by their defensive deficiencies.
But a funny thing happened Sunday night during the Blazers’ thrilling 122-120 overtime victory over the Houston Rockets in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs: That deficiency turned out to be an asset.
“We played physical, we played hard and it was consistent throughout the whole game,” Damian Lillard said of the Blazers’ defense. “Eventually, it kind of won us the game.”
The Blazers frustrated Dwight Howard. They harassed James Harden. They contained the Rockets’ deadly three-point shooting. And they mostly stalled Houston’s dizzying transition attack.
By no means did they stop an offense that is perhaps the NBA’s most feared. But the Blazers did enough against the Rockets’ most potent weapons to steal homecourt advantage with a victory in the best-of-seven series.
It was clear from the get-go that the Blazers’ defense was engaged, as Robin Lopez and LaMarcus Aldridge neutralized Howard — mostly with single coverage — and Wesley Matthews pestered Harden. In the first few possessions, Lopez sniffed out a Harden alley-oop lob to Howard that could have been an energizer and Aldridge delivered a statement block on Howard at the rim, denying him from point-blank range.
It didn’t get a whole lot better for the Rockets’ talented All-Star duo. Howard and Harden each finished with 27 points, but they combined to shoot just 35 percent, as Howard went 9 for 21 from the field and Harden went 8 for 28, including 3 for 14 from three-point range. They combined to make just two of their first 13 shots.
Matthews, who chased and bodied and harassed the beefy, physical Harden for most of the night, was particularly successful. Harden missed plenty of looks he normally makes, but many of his errant shots came with Matthews’ hand in his face or after Matthews forced him out of his comfort zone.
“It was vintage Wes,” Lillard said. “We’re not going to stop James Harden. But we can make it as hard as possible and I thought Wes did a great job.”
When it came down to crunch time, Harden seemed so frustrated by Matthews — or at least his own lack of effectiveness — he rushed the most important shots of the game. With the Blazers leading 121-120 in the closing seconds, Harden collected an inbound pass out of a timeout and charged toward the hoop. As he reached the three-point line, with Nicolas Batum guarding him, Harden stepped back and forced a tough three-point shot with about 12 seconds left. It wasn’t close.
Then, on the final play of the game, Harden worked around a pick-and-roll into the lane and navigated to the elbow. With Batum chasing and Joel Freeland cheating toward him to provide help defense, Harden hesitated, looked around, and ultimately forced a fadeaway jumper over Batum’s outstretched arms. It bricked and the Blazers won.
“I thought it was a respectable defensive game,” said coach Terry Stotts, who has insisted the Blazers' defense hasn't been as bad as advertised. “We did some good things.”
He then reeled off a list of superlatives, noting the Rockets did not attempt a first-half free throw, the Blazers stalled the Rockets’ vaunted transition game — they scored 13 fast-break points, with just four coming after halftime — and the Rockets shot just 23 percent from three-point range. But then Stotts added a caveat.
“There’s always things that you can do better,” he said. “We shouldn’t be satisfied.”
As the Blazers gathered for an optional Monday afternoon practice at the Toyota Center, they were more apt to look ahead at Game 2 rather than celebrate their Game 1 successes. The Rockets' offense can only be contained so much and coach Kevin McHale will no doubt make adjustments.
The Blazers primarily slowed Howard with one-on-one coverage, relying on Lopez and Aldridge — both of whom fouled out — to neutralize the All-Star center. And though Lopez was pleased with the way he made Howard “uncomfortable” and “got under his skin” and Aldridge was happy with his ability to make Howard’s “looks tough,” the Blazers know the beastly center can catch fire and take over a game at any point.
They are prepared to showcase different defensive schemes moving forward, including a host of double-teams, if necessary.
The Blazers’ defense in Game 1 was good enough. But it will have to be even better moving forward.
“I think every game is going to get tougher,” Lillard said. “So no matter how good our defense was last night, it has to be better because they’re going to come out and be better. I’m sure each game is going to be harder to win.”
HOUSTON — From Day 1 of training camp, the knock on the Trail Blazers has been the same.
They have a nice little nucleus of talent. They feature a dynamic and fun-to-watch offense. But in the end, when the playoffs arrive, they will be dogged by their defensive deficiencies.
But a funny thing happened Sunday night during the Blazers’ thrilling 122-120 overtime victory over the Houston Rockets in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs: That deficiency turned out to be an asset.
“We played physical, we played hard and it was consistent throughout the whole game,” Damian Lillard said of the Blazers’ defense. “Eventually, it kind of won us the game.”
The Blazers frustrated Dwight Howard. They harassed James Harden. They contained the Rockets’ deadly three-point shooting. And they mostly stalled Houston’s dizzying transition attack.
By no means did they stop an offense that is perhaps the NBA’s most feared. But the Blazers did enough against the Rockets’ most potent weapons to steal homecourt advantage with a victory in the best-of-seven series.
It was clear from the get-go that the Blazers’ defense was engaged, as Robin Lopez and LaMarcus Aldridge neutralized Howard — mostly with single coverage — and Wesley Matthews pestered Harden. In the first few possessions, Lopez sniffed out a Harden alley-oop lob to Howard that could have been an energizer and Aldridge delivered a statement block on Howard at the rim, denying him from point-blank range.
It didn’t get a whole lot better for the Rockets’ talented All-Star duo. Howard and Harden each finished with 27 points, but they combined to shoot just 35 percent, as Howard went 9 for 21 from the field and Harden went 8 for 28, including 3 for 14 from three-point range. They combined to make just two of their first 13 shots.
Matthews, who chased and bodied and harassed the beefy, physical Harden for most of the night, was particularly successful. Harden missed plenty of looks he normally makes, but many of his errant shots came with Matthews’ hand in his face or after Matthews forced him out of his comfort zone.
“It was vintage Wes,” Lillard said. “We’re not going to stop James Harden. But we can make it as hard as possible and I thought Wes did a great job.”
When it came down to crunch time, Harden seemed so frustrated by Matthews — or at least his own lack of effectiveness — he rushed the most important shots of the game. With the Blazers leading 121-120 in the closing seconds, Harden collected an inbound pass out of a timeout and charged toward the hoop. As he reached the three-point line, with Nicolas Batum guarding him, Harden stepped back and forced a tough three-point shot with about 12 seconds left. It wasn’t close.
Then, on the final play of the game, Harden worked around a pick-and-roll into the lane and navigated to the elbow. With Batum chasing and Joel Freeland cheating toward him to provide help defense, Harden hesitated, looked around, and ultimately forced a fadeaway jumper over Batum’s outstretched arms. It bricked and the Blazers won.
“I thought it was a respectable defensive game,” said coach Terry Stotts, who has insisted the Blazers' defense hasn't been as bad as advertised. “We did some good things.”
He then reeled off a list of superlatives, noting the Rockets did not attempt a first-half free throw, the Blazers stalled the Rockets’ vaunted transition game — they scored 13 fast-break points, with just four coming after halftime — and the Rockets shot just 23 percent from three-point range. But then Stotts added a caveat.
“There’s always things that you can do better,” he said. “We shouldn’t be satisfied.”
As the Blazers gathered for an optional Monday afternoon practice at the Toyota Center, they were more apt to look ahead at Game 2 rather than celebrate their Game 1 successes. The Rockets' offense can only be contained so much and coach Kevin McHale will no doubt make adjustments.
The Blazers primarily slowed Howard with one-on-one coverage, relying on Lopez and Aldridge — both of whom fouled out — to neutralize the All-Star center. And though Lopez was pleased with the way he made Howard “uncomfortable” and “got under his skin” and Aldridge was happy with his ability to make Howard’s “looks tough,” the Blazers know the beastly center can catch fire and take over a game at any point.
They are prepared to showcase different defensive schemes moving forward, including a host of double-teams, if necessary.
The Blazers’ defense in Game 1 was good enough. But it will have to be even better moving forward.
“I think every game is going to get tougher,” Lillard said. “So no matter how good our defense was last night, it has to be better because they’re going to come out and be better. I’m sure each game is going to be harder to win.”