BEAT LA

Tonight the Blazers take on the Los Angeles Lakers at the Rose Garden. The Lakers will be playing the second game in a back to back, they lost last night to Denver at the Staples Center. The Lakers haven't done well at the Rose Garden in a looooong time, try 9 games. The Blazers currently hold a 9 - 0 winning streak at home. The entire city of Portland always comes together for Laker games so this game is not only an important win for the team but the city as well.

Probably Starters:

Portland                              L*kers
LaMarcus Aldridge            Kobe Bryant
Juwan Howard                   Ron Artest
Martell Webster                  Pau Gasol
Jerryd Bayless                    Andew Bynum
Andre Miller                      Derek Fisher

The Blazers have a rough task tonight against LA. It was reported this morning that Brandon Roy will not be returning tonight as many thought. Kevin Pritchard(GM) even went as far to say that they might hold Roy out till All Star Weekend, meaning he wouldn't be playing at home against Oklahoma City and away at Phoenix. Though this is a downer for Blazer fans, let's not count Portland out just yet. Nate McMillan confirmed that Jerryd Bayless would be starting once again in place of Brandon Roy.

•  The Trail Blazers earned a 107-98 victory in the first game of the series Jan. 8 in the Rose City behind 32 points (9-11 FG, 13-14 FT) from Brandon Roy. Portland never trailed, leading by as many as 20 points in the fourth quarter.
•  Portland has defeated the L.A. Lakers in each of the last nine meetings at the Rose Garden, tied for Portland’s longest active home winning streak against any team (Minnesota) and the Lakers’ longest active road losing streak against any team. The Trail Blazers have won 15 of the past 17 home meetings and 22 of 26. The Lakers have won five straight contests in Los Angeles. The home team has won 10 straight games in the series overall.
•  Portland and the L.A. Lakers meet just three times this year, as the Lakers are one of two teams the Trail Blazers visit only once this season (San Antonio). Portland’s only trip to the STAPLES Center to face the Lakers on April 11 marks its final road contest of the season.
•  The Trail Blazers and Lakers split last year’s series, with each game going to the home team. Portland won by 12.5 points per game at the Rose Garden, while Los Angeles outscored Portland by 17.0 points in two games at STAPLES Center.

•  In four meetings last season, the Lakers outshot the Trail Blazers, 46.0% to 41.1%, from the floor. Los Angeles bested Portland from the foul line, 80.5% to 67.3%.

•  Brandon Roy led Portland with 21.7 points, 6.0 assists and 1.67 steals in his three games vs. the Lakers last season. LaMarcus Aldridge tallied 15.5 points, 9.0 boards and 1.50 blocks in four contests.



•  Kobe Bryant led all scorers in the series with 26.8 points in four games a season ago. Pau Gasol added 16.0 points on 27-for-40 (67.5%) shooting in four contests.



Without Roy it's going to be imperative that we start well. A big reason why we've had so many close, nail biting games is because Roy is the team leader and more importantly, the team closer. So, let's take a look at some keys to a Portland victory tonight.

1. Guard Production - With Roy out, it'll more important than ever for our remaining guards to get to the hoop and make good things happen. Dre & Jerryd need to see big nights, we can't afford for them to have quiet 8 point nights.
2. BIG START - Sometimes we tend to start cold and rely on comebacks but tonight it's going to be imperative that we start the game hot. Kobe is known for finishing games for the Lakers and even though he's starting to feel his injuries he's still performing well averaging 27.9 points per game. In our last game against the Lakers at home, the Lakers never led, that's something we'd like to repeat.
3. Boom Boom Batum Defense - Now that we have Nicolas back, one of the biggest things he's given us is defense! Nico has always been great on defense and we need that tonight. If Batum can keep Kobe under 28, it's been a good night.
4. Our "Bigs" - Last time we played LA, Pau Gasol was out....well, he's back giving LA two real centers vs. our zero. Jeff, Dante, Juwan and LaMarcus HAVE to be careful with fouls because if not it's going to be that much more difficult to contain the Lakers scoring in the paint. 
5. Marty Party - Our outside shooters, specifically Martell Webster need to be on point tonight as well. Lately Marty seems to have gotten his consistency back and we all want to celebrate the Marty Party tonight!

I'll be at the game cheering from the 300 level and I really hope we get this win tonight! I'm bringing my all tonight, even made a sign and I hope each and every one of you that's going to the game does the same. Our guys needs us louder than ever tonight and I can't wait to see the gimmicks Portland does for tonight! Last time we got signs, wonder what they'll do tonight!

BEAT LA

A Close Game Results in a Blazer Loss at the King's Court

Coming into this game there was no expectations for the Blazers to win. Cleveland was coming off a two game losing streak, Portland was coming off a win but when the Cavaliers are at home you can bet they'll bring the energy.

Starting FIVE:

Brandon Roy

LaMarcus Aldridge

Martell Webster

Steve Blake

Joel Pryzbilla

Brandon Roy stepped up once again leading the Blazers in scoring with 23 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds and 3 steals. Roy shot a mere 9 - 25 from the field and 2 - 7 from three point range. LaMarcus Aldridge tallied 22 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal. Andre Miller added 20 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists to the mix. Also Notable: Juwan Howard went to work tonight and tallied 15 points and 1 rebound to the mix.

Box Score:

I have said it before, I will say it again, I will never be the one to blame the whole game on the referees but the officiating was shaky in this game. So, I'll just leave it at that. The effort was definitely there for the Blazers. They had an EXCELLENT first half out-scoring Cleveland 54% - 50% from the field and an outstanding 42% - 17% from 3-point range (due in high part to Martell Webster's hot start). Yet, as LeBron has been known to do, James had a quiet start and came out of the gate strong in the second half. Roy had it right saying, "If we relax for even one quarter we can get blown out by anybody." And that's precisely what happened. The Blazers relaxed for that fourth quarter and Cleveland took advantage of that and ran with it. Rebounding hurt us badly, Cleveland out-rebounded us by 10 total rebounds in the game. Things seemed to still be salvageable at the end of the 3rd when the score was tied 76 all but the Cavs pulled away in the fourth and despite an impressive 5 points in about 2 seconds by the Blazers with 12 seconds left on the clock, it just wasn't enough.

Cleveland went on to win the game 104 - 99.

The Blazers next play the Milwaukee Bucks in Milwaukee to end their four game road trip tomorrow at 7:30 PM CT or 5:30 PM PST. They are currently 1 - 2 on the trip.

Keys & Notes:

1. The Bucks’ .717 (38-15) winning percentage is the best of any Eastern Conference team on its home floor against Portland, but the Trail Blazers have won seven of the last 10 games in Milwaukee.
2. The Trail Blazers have won five consecutive meetings against the Bucks, including three straight at the Rose Garden. With a win Saturday, Portland would tie its longest win streak against the Bucks, all-time (six). Portland has won 14 of the last 20 games between the teams overall. 
3. Keep the Bucks Under 100 - The Bucks have a strong winning record when they reach 100 so far this season, they're 5 -2, so the Blazers need to keep this a low scoring game if they want to come away with the win. 
4. Contain Brandon Jennings - Bucks Rookie, Brandon Jennings has been key to the Bucks wins. Milwaukie is 6 - 3 when Jennings hits 3 or more threes and that's not even mentioning his points in the paint.
   

(Pictures: David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images & Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)

Pre-Season Game 7 vs. Utah Jazz

This was my first game of my half season package, so I was really excited to see with my own eyes what all the talk is about, meaning, I wanted to see Greg Oden dominate with another double double! But alas, to my dismay before the game I was informed that not only would Rudy Fernandez be sitting out again, but also Greg Oden. Not to mention that LaMarcus Aldridge was pulled out at last minute due to a shin contusion. You might recall that LA sat out on Sunday's game as well due to a knee contusion. Poor Head Coach, Nate McMillan, probably feels like his team is dropping like flies! Within a minute of the game Nicolas Batum took a knee to his hip and was taken out for the rest of the game. At half time he tried to run and stretch it out but you could tell from the grimace on his face that he was in immense pain. It's still up in the air whether or not he will even be traveling to the Couve, Vancouver BC, with the rest of the team for Thursday's game against Phoenix.

All in all Thursday was a tough, painful game. I distinctly remember a fan sitting behind me who left during the 3rd quarter to get drinks and came back during the beginning of the 4th saying, "Is it any better? Man...it's been awhile since a game has been this painful to watch." And I agree. Looking over at the bench I saw heads lowered and smiles were erased. Brandon Roy looked like someone had punched him in the gut, LaMarcus Aldridge who had been sitting on the bench in his warm-ups despite his injury, and Greg Oden didn't even stick around for the second half.

Chemistry was a big factor in last night's game. Plays went awry, guys were looking at each other like 'Why weren't you over there?' 'You were supposed to be here.' I think Brandon Roy summed it up best saying, "We just look like we've never seen each other today." It's definitely a disheartening thing to see especially this close to the regular season.

But, with a good number of our regular starters and big players injured, it gave some of the new guys a chance to show Portland what they got. Dante Cunningham had 14 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists in 21 minutes and Jerryd Bayless had 16 points in 21 minutes. Those two were big for Portland last night in the 4th quarter cutting Utah's 25 point lead down to 10 at one point. Also, Juwan Howard is continuing to show that he's not only good for locker room talk with 8 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and even 2 steals! Not to mention he was called for a technical foul for regulating the law on the court ;-) not that I encourage that sort of behavior but he basically acted on everyone in the Rose Garden's feelings towards the Jazz that night.
(Thanks to Blaze of Love for the stat box below)

Jazz ended up winning the game 108 - 97. (So close to a chalupa)

Next up the Blazers play their final pre-season game in The Couve!! Vancouver BC to be exact, against the Phoenix Suns! We're all waiting to see what kind of lineup Nate McMillan will present since usually, this kind of game is one where the rookies and new kids get the most playing time so our starters and big guys can relax before the season opener, but with the way the Blazers have been playing we might see something different.
A fun fact about last night's game, I was able to meet up with a good friend of mine from Italy, Gulia. It was her first Blazer game and she loved it and the atmosphere, definitely a Blazer for life ;-). But she was a little dismayed to discover that her beloved Rudy would not be playing. Rudy's very popular in Italy apparently. Hopefully we will be able to venture to more games in the future and maybe even meet her beloved Rudy along the way.

Here are some not so awesome pictures I was able to snag with my phone. Don't worry, for future games I will use a real camera :-)

 

 

 

 

Onto game 8!

Pre-Season Game 2 @ Sacramento

Last night was game two of the Blazer's pre-season against the Sacramento Kings, this time at Sacramento. Blazers head coach Nate McMillan decided to have Fernandez, Przybilla, and Batum sit out for this game giving them a chance for some much deserved rest, especially for Rudy and Nic who have pretty much been playing non-stop basketball since last season, but that gave the other young guns in McMillan's arsenal the chance to show what they got.

Our starting five consisted of:
B.Roy
S.Blake
G.Oden
L.Aldridge
M.Webster

Once again we saw a dominating performance from Greg Oden. Tuesday night he was one rebound away from a double-double, well last night he got it. Greg was the night's leader with 20 points and 12 rebounds. He's showing a whole new brand of power and confidence this year. His work over the summer has definitely paid off. All the skeptics out there are biting their tongues. We can only hope this new G.O. continues to improve and get stronger throughout the season.

LaMarcus Aldridge who was the high scorer the previous night with 20 points, had a pretty slow night with only 3 points and 3 rebounds. Brandon Roy left the game with 13 points and 1 rebound.

Juwan Howard entered the game and clocked in his first minutes as a Blazer and proved everyone wrong. Many thought Howard was brought on the team to bring leadership but last night he proved he can still play some ball. Howard scored 14 points and had 4 rebounds.

So far so good guys! The Blazers are 2-0 in the pre-season and we can only hope this level of basketball continues into the official season.

Remember, unfortunately none of the pre-season games will be aired on television. You can catch the call of the games on 95.5 The Game if you live in the Portland area.

and remember, Brandon Roy will be doing a signing, on Saturday in King's City. Here's the info:

3:00-5:00PM, Saturday, October 10th

Game Crazy
15660 SW Pacific Hwy, Ste. 100
Tigard, OR 97224

He will be signing copies of the new NBA 2K10 video game and probably anything else you bring and one lucky fan will get to battle it out with him in the game! GET THERE EARLY! I'm assuming this event will be packed so think ahead! I'm going to try to make it down there and see what I can see, you know I'll be taking pictures and hopefully maybe get a picture with the All Star :)