Blazers Clip Past the Los Angeles Clippers

Last night, the Blazers met with the Clippers at the Rose Garden after a nice long rest during All-Star weekend. This game came directly after Blazers general manager, Kevin Pritchard, made a deal with LAC to trade Travis Outlaw, Steve Blake & money considerations for Marcus Camby (see last post). With the 2009-2010 season dwindling down, the Blazers were looking to come off AS Weekend strong with a nice win propelling them into a rough hunt for the playoffs.

Starting Cinco:

LaMarcus Aldridge
Martell Webster
Andre Miller
Juwan Howard
Brandon Roy

You're eyes do no deceive you, Brandon Roy is finally "back." I say that cautiously though since BRoy didn't finish out the game, he had to come out after only 15 minutes of play and then stay out because his hammy fired up. He finished with only 4 points. The high scorer of the night for Portland was none other than Marty Marty DOWNTOWN Party who tied his career high of 28 points and also tallied 1 rebound, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. Martell Webster threw the Marty Party at the RG last night and made big shots down the stretch for the Blazers to help keep an edge over the Clippers. LaMarcus Aldridge took a close silver spot with 22 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assits, 3 steals and 1 block.

Here's a look at the rest of the box score:

The Blazers played a great game overall shooting 49.3% from the field, a big 55.6% from 3-pt range and 78.1% from the line. With only 9 turnovers and 25 assists the Blazers went to work on the Clippers and never let up. Portland went on to win the game 109 - 87.

Photo Of the Night:

You can just hear Roy screaming: "UGH my leg is falling off!!" Get well soon BRoy, we need you 100%

Portland next faces the Boston Celtics on Friday. (This game will also be Marcus Camby's debut as a Blazer)

•  The Trail Blazers scored five straight points to force overtime, but Ray Allen’s three-
pointer with 41 seconds to play in the extra period proved to be the game winner in Boston’s 98-95 victory on Feb. 10 in the first game of the 2009-10 series. Andre Miller led all players with 28 points to go with eight rebounds and eight assists.
•  Portland and Boston split last season’s series for the first time since 2004-05, with
each team winning on its home floor.
•  The Trail Blazers snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Celtics with a 91-86 win
on Dec. 30, 2008. In the absence of an injured Brandon Roy, Rudy Fernandez made his first career start, scoring eight points.
•  Portland’s 78 points (to Boston’s 93) on Dec. 5, 2008, are the fewest scored by either
team in series history. The Trail Blazers averaged 84.5 points in two games last season, the fewest against any NBA opponent.
•  The Trail Blazers held the Celtics to 43.6% shooting (22.2% 3-PT) last season but posted only a 44.0% shooting mark (30.8% 3-PT) of their own in two games.
•  Portland recorded 10 blocks to Boston’s two rejections in two meetings last season.
•  The Trail Blazers tallied only 25 assists on 62 field goals in two games vs. Boston in 2008-09. The Celtics had 35 assists on 61 baskets.
•  Portland’s .406 (39-57) all-time winning percentage against Boston is its lowest mark among all current NBA opponents. The Celtics are the NBA’s only active team with a winning record in Portland (25-23).
•  On Draft Day 2006, Portland dealt Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff and a 2008 second round pick to Boston in exchange for Raef LaFrentz, Dan Dickau and the draft rights to Randy Foye. Foye’s rights were then traded to Minnesota for the draft rights to Brandon Roy.
•  Nate McMillan coached Boston guard Ray Allen from 2003-05 in Seattle.
•  The Celtics’ Rasheed Wallace ranks No. 8 in points, No. 6 in rebounds, No. 7 in 3-pointers made, No. 3 in blocks and No. 5 in minutes played among Portland’s all-time leaders.
•  Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge was a member of the Portland Trail Blazers for two seasons, averaging 10.4 points in 161 games from 1990-92.

(Pictures: ESPN Sports)

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

Blazers Sweep The Spurs

Tonight the Blazers came back home to face the San Antonio Spurs. This was the second game in a back to back for Blazers coming off of a tough loss in Utah last night. Going into this game the Blazers had previously beaten the Spurs in San Antonio and were looking for a Spurs sweep with a win at the Rose Garden tonight.

Starting FIVE:

LaMarcus Aldridge
Martell Webster
Juwan Howard
Jerryd Bayless
Andre Miller

It was LA's night tonight. Aldridge was the team's high scorer with his team high 17th double-double of the season. LaMArcus tallied 28 points, 13 rebounds and 3 assists in 41 minutes of play. He shot 12 - 22 from the field and 4 - 7 from the free throw line. LMA had a huge basket in the 4th quarter putting the Blazers up and starting a big Blazer run to get the win. When Bradon Roy went out, the first thing I thought was LaMarcus better be steppin up his game and he has answered in such a huge way for this team. His aggression in the paint on both ends of the court has gone through the roof and his production in both points and rebounds has been huge! I think Roy's injury was a big wake-up call for LaMarcus and I'm proud to say he answered it. Martell Webster also had a huge night tonight and was a big reason for why the Blazers won. Marty tallied 21 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in 30 minutes of play. Marty shot 6 - 9 from the field and an incredible, perfect 5 - 5 from beyond the arch and 4 -4 from the free throw line. Many of those 3's and FT's came in clutch moments of the game and can undoubtedly be considered game winners. The Marty Party was in full effect tonight! I love seeing Martell be in top of his game and bringing the consistency! Andre Miller tallied 11 points but shot an uncharacteristic 1 - 4 from the free throw line and  some of those FT's were in clutch situations. Dante 'INFERNO' Cunningham is continuing to stay consistent and knock down shots from the 18 footer range. He tallied a nice 9 points and 4 rebounds, shooting 4 - 6 from the field in 19 minutes of play.

The game stayed pretty close throughout most of the game with the Spurs never leading by more than 12 but things started to look to be in San Antonio's favor after a run in the 4th put them up 10. Luckily the Blazers rallied back with a huge momentum shifting two from LaMarcus and a big fat three from Martell. With only 18 seconds remaining, Blazers led 92 - 89 and SA had the ball, when the wings didn't rotate on defense, Manu Ginobli was able to find a wide open three and as it went off you could hear all Blazer fans inhale and flash back to the New Orleans game BUT he missed it so all was well. The Blazers ended up winning 96 - 93.

Photo(s) of the Night:

That's right Webster, 5 - 5. MARTY PARTY in the building

Argentina vs. Spain - Sign in the RG read: "I'll Take Your Ginobli and Raise You a Fernandez"

The Blazers next play the L*kers at the Rose Garden on Saturday! No keys and series notes in this post, I'll be devoting a whole post to the Portland & LA rivalry! 

(Photos: Yahoo! Sports)

Roy's Hamstring is Anti-Blazers, Nico is BACK & Greg Oden's Not So Little Friend Makes Its Presence Known

I know I know, it's been a long while Blazer Nation, miss me? No don't answer that... Anyway, a lot of crazy mayhem has gone down. First off let's take a moment to pay homage to the injured Blazers since my sabbatical:

No, I did not include Brandon Roy but that's because *knock on wood* Roy's injury should only be putting him on the bench for a couple weeks total and he should, hopefully, be back on the court after this next road trip.

Huge congrats are in order though for Coach McMillan, Rudy Fernandez and Nicolas Batum who have all made healthy recoveries from their injuries and are back on the court!!

And what a difference their return has made. Rudy took a game or two to get back in the swing of things but my oh my, Nicolas Batum was HUNGRY to get back on the court and immediately was back to his old Batuuuuum-Shaka-Laka self! In his game debut, Batum posted 6 points, 1 assist and 1 rebound while shooting 3 - 5 from the field. In Wednesday's game against Utah, Batum was a HUGE factor. In our almost scoreless first quarter Nico posted 7 of our 9 points. He went on to score 16 points, shooting 7 - 9 from the field and a perfect 2 - 2 from beyond the arch. Rudy has been playing extremely well (we'll not talk about the incident at Boston where Rudy threw a bad three up that could have tied the game even though he had 3.5 seconds to get set....). Though we all love a good RUDY POR TRES, I think we are all even more excited about the new inside game El Machetero has been playing. He drops floaters in the paint like a pro and boy are they pretty.

Unfortunately I have to report our first two home game losing streak of the season. The Blazers lost against New Orleans at home after a close game that the Blazers just couldn't close in the end. The Blazers led for most of the game, albeit not by much but towards the end everything fell apart. A lapse in defense and a Hornets run ending with a wide open jump shot for Chris Paul allowed the Hornets to come away with a one point win. On wednesday, the Blazers faced the Jazz at home and the beginning of that game was one Blazer fans and players probably want to erase from memory completely. The Jazz were able to take an early 10 - 0 lead and it didn't get much better. I haven't heard a Blazer crowd boo that loud since the Jail Blazers era. The referees seemed a little protective over Utah in the first half, if a Blazer breathed on a ?Utahonian? a foul was called. You know I never blame games on the refs but man were they brutal in that game. The Blazers were able to slightly redeem themselves towards the end with a big run that brought them within 5 but nothing could be done, our 4th quarter finisher was still resting his hamstring on the bench and there was no more energy left to take a win. The Blazers ended up losing 106 - 95. Dre and Blakey combined for their worst games of the season (I bet) shooting 2 - 17 from the field. LaMarcus Aldridge did his best to carry the team tallying 25 points and 9 rebounds and even attempting three 3 pointers at the end. Nicolas Batum (as stated earlier) was a huge part of keeping the Blazers in the game with his 16 points and Martell Webster has a big game himself. Prior to the game, Marty announced that he would be donating $1000 for every point he scored to Haitian relief. Martell ended the game with 14 points, 2 of which were big threes when Portland needed them most. Marty ended up donating $14,000 to Haitian relief, way to go Marty!! The #MartyParty never ends!

Tonight the Blazers take on the Houston Rockets in Houston as they start their Texan Back-2-Back. We really need these wins on the road to make up for our recent misfortune at home if we want to to still be contenders in the playoff hunt. You can catch the game on Comcast Sportsnet and 95.5 FM the Game on the radio if you're in the Portland area.

AND I'M BACK! Now that finals are over and I have a little more free time, I'm hoping to be making more frequent posts when news arises and after every game! And though I addressed it in the title, I will not say anything more on the subject of Greg Oden's nude pictures. You can't make me. 

Blazers End Road Trip In a Heated Battle with Milwaukee

The Blazers ended their four game road trip in Milwaukee on Saturday. Going into this game the Blazers were 1 - 2 on this road trip, so they were in a must-win situation in order to keep their conference stance and keep morale high.

Starters:
Brandon Roy
LaMarcus Aldridge
Steve Blake
Joel Pryzbilla
Martell Webster

Time for a tip of the hat to LaMarcus Aldridge. Coming into this game, LA had an extremely sore ankle (he twisted it in the previous game) and many were on edge wondering if he would have to opt out of this game giving us a healthy bench of 8 but he pushed through and had one hell of game. Aldridge tallied a season high 31 points, and 16 rebounds in 52 minutes of play. LA was fantastic in this game. He really stepped his game up and helped to keep the team afloat throughout 4 quarters and 2 overtimes. Brandon Roy notched 23 rebounds, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. Once again Roy took it upon himself to fight through to the end of this game, making huge baskets at times when the Blazers needed it most. Martell Webster also got on a hot streak and tallied 16 points and 4 rebounds and a crazy four point play. I've been careful to stay out of the Bayless, Blake and Miller drama but I just have one thing to say:

Jerryd Bayless - about 18 minutes of play - 9 points, 3 rebounds - +5 - 3/6 from the field
Steve Blake - about 42 minutes of play - 7 points, 5 rebounds - -8 - 3/10 from the field

I think the numbers speak for themselves.

The Blazers played well in this game despite a slow start. The Blazers had the lead for the first half and in that half the young Buck, Brandon Jennings was non-existent. He didn't shoot, he never scored. The second half was another story. Jennings came rocketing out of the gate and helped the Bucks tie the game up. Andrew Bogut thought he had a buzzer beating, game winning tip in at the end of the fourth but he clearly touched the ball after the shot clock expired so into overtime we go.  I'll say it again, I won't ever completely blame the outcome of a game on the referees but in this case, I think all those who witnessed this game can say that the refs made a game changing call. The Bucks had possession, they missed the basket, LaMarcus and Mbah a Moute went up for the rebound, LMA had it in his hands and Mbah a Moute clearly pushed it out of his hands which initially resulted in a Bucks turnover, Portland ball. The refs went to review the play and ended up changing the call after several minutes of review. Good call? I think not.


Despite the Blazers energy and push throughout this battle, Milwaukee ended up winning 108 - 101.

Portland next hosts former teammate, Sergio Rodriguez and his Sacramento Kings tonight at 7 PM PST. The game will be aired on KGW with pre-game at 6:30 PM. This also means you can purchase the game  to view it online if you won't be near a TV, check out info for that HERE.

Due to a mountain of work with little time before the game, there are no keys tonight, just some series notes:

•  The Trail Blazers swept Sacramento, 3-0, in last year’s series for the first time since posting a 4-0 win over the Kings in 1999-2000.
•  Portland outscored Sacramento, 105.7-87.7, in three wins a season ago. The Trail Blazers shot 45.6% from the field while holding
the Kings to a 42.7% clip.
•  The Trail Blazers outrebounded Sacramento, 145-99, in three games last year, including a 50-25 edge on the offensive glass that
led to a 53-14 advantage in second-chance scoring. Portland’s 59 rebounds vs. Sacramento on Dec. 16 marked a season best.


•  Sacramento Kings President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie played for Portland from 1970-76, averaging 21.8 points per
game, including a team-best 24.8 points during the Trail Blazers’ inaugural campaign.

I will be at the game tonight, so I will do my best to twitter updates as often as possible with pictures when I can.

(Pictues: Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)

Blazers' Winning Streak Against Cities Beginning With An 'M' Takes A Hit

The Blazers met up with the Memphis Grizzlies at the Rose Garden tonight. In a game predicted as a win for the Blazers all fans were looking for that big win going into a road trip to Utah and alas, those hopes were destroyed with an ugly performance early on for the Blazers.

Starting 5:
Brandon Roy
LaMarcus Aldridge
Martell Webster
Greg Oden
Steve Blake

Martell Webster is continuing to earn that spot on the starting roster. Though he was not the high scorer of the night, he started the game off hot and was the only player for the Blazers to have a positive +/- with +3. Webster walked away with 24 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 nasty blocks. He shot 9 - 14 from the field and 6 - 11 from 3-point range.  He made huge baskets when it really mattered down the stretch and I think we'll definitely be seeing much more of Martell to come if his game continues to improve from this already high level.
Brandon Roy was the high scorer of the night with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists. A near triple-double for the All-Star tonight, but the stats look better on paper than in the actual game. He shot an ugly 9 -22 from the field and 2 - 6 from the arc. Roy's fellow captain, LaMarcus Aldridge didn't play much better with 16 points, 9 rebounds and 1 assist. He shot 7 - 16 from the field but at least he was 100% from 3 - point range! LA made a big 3 when Portland needed it most but unfortunately it still wasn't enough. Roy and LA played the entire 4th quarter despite putting in heavy minutes earlier in the game. Roy totaled 42 minutes and LA played 44 minutes.

Sloppy moves and turnovers really hurt the Blazers and allowed Memphis to dominate the first half with a 32 - 1 run. Memphis came out on the court with an intensity and will to win whereas the Blazers seemed to have eaten too much turkey, looking slow and confused. Our 2nd unit didn't help too much either with only two of them scoring, Rudy Fernandez tallied 4 points and Andre Miller tallied 13 points. Miller was huge down the stretch though with fast paced plays and penetration at a time when Memphis was outscoring Portland in the paint badly. Head Coach Nate McMillan attributed the poor play to lack of energy saying, "There was none. I mean, energy? There was no energy out there in the first half. That team comes in here and jumps on us like that. No energy. I thought for most of the game there was no energy and really no excuse for no energy." McMillan also called out talked about the need for Roy and LA to step up and lead their team, "I think Brandon and LaMarcus are our captains and our leaders. We need to feed off of that. That emotion. Not allowing us to play this way. Not that we're calling them [out] -- they are the guys we feed off of, they are the guys that can do a lot, encouraging support. We need that. We need that. We're going to play off of them. Greg has done some good things. We brought Miller in here. Our guys, that we feed off of, are those two. And when they have a nice rhythm going those guys on that floor gain confidence.....Those are our go-to guys. Those are guys that have made it happen. That we're playing off of. We need them. We need them." I liked Ben Golliver over at BlazersEdge's remark on Nate playing Roy and LA for all of the fourth quarter saying, "Although he couched his post-game commentary with "not calling them out" I thought McMillan's lack of fourth quarter substitutions for his captains told the whole story: this embarrasing deficit is your bed, captains, you'll dig us out of it or sleep in it."

Memphis came away with the win in the end: 106 - 96. The Blazers were able to cut the lead down to 10 by the end but the damage had already been done. At a time when Portland needed to make stops and get on a run, they simply traded baskets with Memphis allowing the Grizzlies to maintain and keep their lead. Martell Wesbter commented on this late comeback (that he was a huge part of) after the game, "We all pushed to try to make that comeback. It's not a one man show. But we just couldn't quite put 48 minutes together. We just gotta learn from our mistakes." Too true Marty. With this loss the Blazers winning streak against cities that start with 'M' ends at 27 games.

The Blazers next face the Utah Jazz in Utah tomorrow night. The Trail Blazers and Jazz split last season’s series, 2-2, for the fourth time in the last six seasons. The home team has won seven straight games and 12 of the past 13 in the series. Portland has taken six straight meetings over
the Jazz at the Rose Garden, while Utah has taken the last three in Salt Lake City. All in all we're looking at an interesting match-up and a good opportunity for the Blazers to come back once again. The game is set to air on KGW at 6 PM PST and the call will be on radio station 95.5 the game with Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey. If you're not in the area or won't be near a TV but will be near your computer this is one of the games you can purchase to view on-line, more deets can be found at trailblazers.com. Also you can check out the LIVE game chat moderated by Casey Holdahl and Max Mandel while you're there too.



On an off topic note, I apologize for the lack of posts! I have missed two games, one of them being the beautiful Bulls v. Blazers game in which Greg Oden and LaMarcus played some of their best basketball this season! I was really excited to post about that one but life has hit me hard and unfortunately my first post back is for a game I was not excited to write about but whatcha gonna do?

I hope each and every member of Blazer Nation had a wonderful Thanksgiving and a safe Black Friday! I am thankful for YOU, that's right you! Thank you for reading and supporting this little blog! I appreciate your support more than you know!

(Pictures: Yahoo Sports)

Blazers Find Redemption Against Minnesota

Last night the Trail Blazers returned home for a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. After a devastating loss to Golden State the previous night, the Blazers were looking to bounce back against a team they had beaten in each match up so far this season.

Starting Five:

Brandon Roy
LaMarcus Aldridge
Greg Oden
Steve Blake
Martell Webster

No, that wasn't a typo. McMillan decided to switch up the starting line up last night based on the need for a stronger second unit with Travis Outlaw out of the game and last night it worked like a charm.

I am proud to give top honors of the night to my man. Martell Webster! Webster had a career best game with his first double - double! He tallied 21 points, 13 rebounds and 2 assists. What a game for Marty and not to mention he was the Chalupa man of the night upon his dunk off of Juwan Howard's miss. Webster has definitely had a rough start to this season which is understandable to a point seeing as how he was injured for basically all of last season. It's really nice to see Martell back in old form and I think this line up will allow him to thrive. Webster credited his fantastic night to his teammates saying, "Nobody on this team is selfish, when someone gets hot they get goin' to that person and it's out of respect, you know, if you've got a hot hand keep feelin' the ball and we do that, I mean we play as a team but at the same time if there's somebody playin' good we roll with that."

Brandon Roy once again took the silver. He tallied 18 points and 5 rebounds. He was definitely happy to see the old line up back saying, "Of course I like it, I'm back in my natural position." Steve Blake and Joel Przybilla each tacked on 14 points and Greg Oden tallied 16 points. Blake had a great night shooting 5 - 7 from the field and 4 - 6 from 3-point range. The team did an excellent job holding back the Timberwolves last night. They yielded only 78 points. We were 1 point away from a 30 point blowout. Blazers ended up winning the contest 106 - 78. The team seemed to have it back on track in the late 3rd and 4th quarter after allowing the TWolves to sneak back up and even taking the lead at one point, but they were able to keep it together and come away with a win.

NOW onto more important matters such as Rudy Fernandez's meet & greet at Cascade Station today! I was woken up this morning by my good friend Sammi, (Rudy's biggest fan) who is now living in New York, who commanded me (like she had to) to go to a meet & greet with Rudy as was posted on the Blazer's twitter feed. I was lucky to find a couple of other friends who were available on short notice and went down to Cascade Station at 1:30 for a 2 - 3 PM event. The line was actually not as bad as I thought it would be. Here are some pictures I was able to catch from the event:

 

What a nice guy! I had my friend Sammi on the phone when I went up to him and got him to say hi, although she started talking really fast and I doubt he understoof a word she said. If you ever get the chance definitely take the opportunity to meet and talk with Rudy! I was really glad to have been able to get to this signing since I had to miss Brandon Roy's and Andre Miller's! BIG thanks goes out to the Blazers and Verizon Wireless for making this event happen! Also shout out to Casey Holdahl who I spotted laughing at us fan girls and taking pictures and notes of the event!

Anywho onto pictures from last night's game:

 

 

 

 

 

Man I love my camera! Those were taken from the 300 level! Anyway, the Blazers next play the Chicago Bulls on Monday at 7 PM PST! The game will be aired on Comcast Sportsnet and 95.5 the Game!

(Pictures Yahoo Sports & Myself)

Blazers Win in Minnesota, Greg Oden Brings A Little Faith Back to the People of Portland

Tonight, the Blazers played the Minnesota Timberwolves in Minnesota, their second away game of this five game road trip and third away game over all. Going into this game, the Wolves were looking for some payback after the Blazers cruised to a win over them at the Rose Garden and we were looking for our tenth consecutive win over Minnesota.

Our starting five tonight:

Brandon Roy
LaMarcus Aldridge
Steve Blake
Andre Miller
Greg Oden

The three guard lineup has been doing wonders for the team and we will probably continue to see more of it until possibly the Charlotte game where we would see an uneven match up. Nonetheless, this lineup continued to show dominance in tonight's game. I always like to give love to the highest scorer of the night first, so ladies and gentlemen please give it up for Greg Oden! G.O. was the night's high scorer, and all around amazing player, with 18 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 blocked shot. He got a double double before the first half was even over. On top of all the amazing Greg Oden was producing tonight he put his name in the point guard drawing by taking the ball down the court on a fast break. That had to be my favorite play(along with quite a few others, this play was only showed about 1000 times on CSN)of the season so far. It was really nice to see a happy, carefree and comedic Oden. After passing the ball to LMA who passed it back to Greg who then dunked it, Greg looked at the bench and Nate McMillan and had the biggest smile on his face. It doesn't get better than that. Oh, did I mention Greg didn't have a single foul tonight? Yeah, your eyes do not fool you Blazer Nation, 0 fouls for the entire game.

Anyway, Greg Oden praise section done, there were other players out there too believe it or not. Rudy Fernandez had a hot night with 15 points,  2 rebounds and 5 assists! Rudy was 5 of 7 from the field and shot 4 of 4 from the 3-point line. Definitely an improvement from his slow start this season. Martell Webster had a great night with 16 points, 3 rebounds and 2 steals. Brandon Roy came away with 14 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists. Roy is learning more and more how to play without the ball. I think he's been the star, carrying this team for so long that for a while there he wasn't sure how to deal with not having as many touches as he used to but his play is looking wiser everyday. LaMarcus Aldridge had a slow start but was able to carry the team for a bit in the late 3rd and early 4th quarters. He came away with 11 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. Also something to note is Joel Przybilla's 4 blocked shots, 3 of which came within about 2 minutes of coming into the game. Very nice Thrilla, verrrry nice. Oh and no Blazer had more than 3 fouls tonight. Nice to see some good clean defense.

The Blazers were able to come away with the win,  107 - 84. This 23 point win is their biggest ever in Minnesota beating last year's 20 point win. The Blazers are now 5 - 3 in the season, tying them with the Denver Nuggets for the NW Division. So, to all of you doubters out there who were ready to jump after the Blazers lost to Atlanta, take this into consideration: this start for the Blazers has been their best 9 game start since the 1999-2000 season. Better believe it.

The Blazers next take on Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets in New Orleans on Friday. The game will air on Comcast Sportsnet at 5 PM PST. Some keys to this game will be:

• Shutting CP3 down! - This guy can push the momentum on both ends, so we will need to keep him out of the paint and avoid sending him to the free throw line. 
• Turnovers kill us! - We need to make clean passes and stop fastbreak points on the other end
• Free Throws are GOLD - We're doing a whole lot better getting to the line and making those shots, but FT's are always key to a good clean win.

(Pictures Associated Press)

Blazers Pre-Season Opener Vs. Sacramento Kings

Tonight was the first game of the pre-season against the Sacramento Kings and ,ex-member of the Spanish Connection, Sergio Rodriguez. Here's a bit of a re-cap:

-LaMarcus Aldridge lead the game with 20 points and 5 rebounds.

-Greg Oden brought the heat as well with 18 points and 9 rebounds, 1 rebound away from a double-double!

-Brandon Roy has a pretty quiet game with 6 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists. He let his teammates lead the way.

-Andre Miller also made into the double digits with 16 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists.

-Martell Webster also had a quiet start matching Roy's 6 points, and 2 rebounds and 1 assist.

-Hometown hero Ime Udoka came in for the final quarter and scored 5 points and 1 assist.

-Ex-Spanish Connection member, Sergio Rodriguez scored 7 points and 1 assist for the Kings.

The Blazers went on to win the game 98-86! McMillan, on 95.5 The Fan's Post Game Interview, talked about how rebounding needs to be worked on but he is pleased with their 40+ trips to the free throw line.

This was a strong start for the Blazers. Yes, they need to work on rebounds and free throws, but I liked the fact that Brandon wasn't carrying the team as he has done in the past. We saw a stronger team out there tonight. And can we talk about Greg Oden?! He definitely proved himself tonight and showed off all the skills he's worked so hard on over the summer.

Another point of interest, the pre-season games will not be aired on television and if you can't listen to them on the radio I suggest joining OregonLive's live chat during games: http://bit.ly/QRHSr. I was in that chat tonight while listening on the radio and a member of the Oregonian was in the chat posting live updates. Many members of the chat made sure to express their unhappiness with the Blazer crew for not airing any of the pre-season games on television. Can't say I don't blame them, it's always nice to get friends together and watch the games on television when you can't be there in person but you got to make the best with what you have. There is that chat as well as Yahoo's GameChannel which updates periodically with calls from the game, scores and stats: http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/gamechannel

The Blazers are currently flying to Sacramento for tomorrow's game at the King's home court.

Good Luck guys! Let's go for an undefeated pre-season!

ALSO: If you want to meet Brandon Roy, make your way over to the Game Crazy on Highway 99 in King City from 3-5 PM on Saturday Oct 10! He'll be there signing copies of the new NBA 2k-10 video game! You'll also get the chance to play against him in the game! 95.5 The Fan will also be there so you know it'll be fun! Be sure to get there early for any chance of meeting him, it'll probably be packed! Check out 95.5 The Game's website for more details!

GO BLAZERS!

Fan Fest 2009!

Sunday night was the Portland Trail Blazer Fan Fest at the Rose Quarter. I had planned to get some of my group together to go down to the Rose Quarter early assuming, since this is a free event with general admission, people would be lining up. Unfortunately, due to Murphy's Law, I didn't get there till 4:30, 30 minutes before the doors opened. There were so many people there and I talked to some Blazer fans who had started lining up at 6 AM! Now that's dedication! I was able to meet up with the rest of my group and have a pretty good spot in line. Contrary to prior Fan Fests, no athletes were present, at least at our entrance, which was kind of a downer, but I'm not surprised considering the mass mob that formed once the doors opened. I was able to get amazing seats about four rows from the court on the home bench side behind the basket. All in all it was an amazing night and so much fun! It was great to see the new guys show their stuff and it was awesome to see Martell Webster back on the court sporting his new number 23. Martell looked great out there, can't wait to see him playing on Tuesday! Also, it was great to see Ime Udoka back on the team. When introduced during the Q&A he got a massive amount of welcome home cheers and applause.

Here are some of my best pictures from Sunday:
















Be sure to follow my twitter for updates on the games! My first pre-season tickets are for the game on the 20th vs. Utah. When I am not actually present at game I will tweet highlights as often as the radio and internet allows!
Twitter: twitter.com/_blazer_nation_

when I am present at games I will also be posting pictures from that account as well as my personal Twitter: twitter.com/annainthehouse