Wednesday
Jan132010
Blazers Thump Milwaukee, 120-108
Portland Roundball Society | Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at 11:00PM
A knock on the Trail Blazers—if there is one—is that they have a habit of playing to the level of their opponent. In their last ten games, the Blazers have lost to Memphis, the Clippers, and Philadelphia, while toppling San Antonio, Denver, and the Lakers. Wednesday against the Bucks, however, Portland did nothing of the sort--all night long they beat Milwaukee like a cheap drum.
Perhaps the two preceding games against the Lakers and Cavaliers elevated the Blazers' focus, energy, and execution (thereby making Milwaukee feel like JV). Maybe the Bucks were just plain awful (and they most certainly were). Or perhaps the ugly taste of December 12th's 108-101 double-overtime loss still looms large. If it were any of these things, coach McMillan chose the latter. He talked about it in his post-game press conference:
In the end, Wednesday's game wasn't as close as the 120-108 final score would suggest.
With 5:40 to go in the third the Blazers were up 33 and the starters were pulled. Brandon Roy was so confident of the win he asked his coach if--as long as the lead stayed safe--he could remain out. Roy spent the fourth quarter in the trainer's room, receiving treatment on his sore hamstring. Alarmists, be calm—Roy could've played. He talked about the evening, and the lingering pain in his hamstring:
Roy did most of his work early, scoring the Blazers' first eight points. He finished the quarter with 12, and the game with 24.
The Blazers followed Roy's hot hand, and finished the game shooting 60% from the field.
While Roy sat, Jerryd Bayless has a difficult time orchestrating the offense. Although he finished with 12 points, Bayless handed out just two assists, three turnovers, and managed to whip up a number of ill-advised shots, poor passes, and frustrated fouls. During this starter-less stretch, Portland's lead was whittled from 33 to 11. Coach McMillan then plugged in his starters (sans Roy) and things cooled out.
Rudy Fernandez, returning from back surgery, played for the first time since December 1st. When Fernandez checked in, the crowd's welcoming standing ovation was every bit as loud as anything in Friday's raucous Laker game. Fernandez's on-court response, however, lacked the same fervor. Despite going one-for-five from the field, and missing all four three-point attempts, Fernandez says he feels good. He just needs time to "get his breath" back. After the game he addressed the hungry media:
Steve Blake, who is still presumably trying to gain back the eight pounds he recently lost to pneumonia, looked much better than he did Sunday, hitting three of five from downtown.
For the Bucks, rookie Jodie Meeks scored a career-high 21. Center Andrew Bogut, who many in the local media predicted would trample the Blazers' complete lack a inside presence, had a double-double (10 points and 11 rebounds), but at no point did he ever look dominating.
Perhaps most disappointing was the play of heralded rookie Brandon Jennings, who has been slumping. Jennings scored 12 to go with seven assists, but looked at times like he was phoning it in. Most of Jennings' shots came from deep and his defense was lackadaisical (Steve Blake shook him in the lane). His past 55-point performance was practically impossible to imagine.
"Jennings is whack," someone nearby blurted out. And Wednesday—along with the rest of the Bucks—he certainly was.
NOTES:
120 points was the Portland's second highest scoring output this season (they scored 122 against Chicago), and 65 tied the high for a half. LaMarcus Aldridge finished with 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Also, a blip on the pre-game radar: Kevin Pritchard, Tom Penn and other members of the Blazer brain trust were congregating in a different place than usual during early warm-ups: front-row, watching the Bucks warm up. As we all know, should the Blazers find a deal that makes sense, they'd love to pick up a big man. As the Bucks team headed back into the locker room, Pritchard and co. remained, as did Milwaukee centers Dan Gadzuric and Francisco Elson. The duo continued shooting for some time, working up quite a lather, in what could've been a defacto audition. Elson seemed to focus on his range, taking a number of deep twos and threes, though he certainly wouldn't have been considered spot on. In the real audition--if indeed it were so--Gadzuric faired much better. In 14 minutes he scored seven points and grabbed eight rebounds. Elson nabbed only the DNP.
Finally--and this is hearsay, but too awesome to pass up--I'm hoping readers who watched the game at home can add their two cents. As told to me by my bartender friend Cedar, who watched the game on CSN: "Mike and Mike were talking about shoe size... They're going on about the different players and Barrett says 'Greg Oden wears a 20 and LaMarcus Aldridge wears an 18,' to which Rice responds, 'I'm not trying to buy a condom!'" Wow. Awesome.
Perhaps the two preceding games against the Lakers and Cavaliers elevated the Blazers' focus, energy, and execution (thereby making Milwaukee feel like JV). Maybe the Bucks were just plain awful (and they most certainly were). Or perhaps the ugly taste of December 12th's 108-101 double-overtime loss still looms large. If it were any of these things, coach McMillan chose the latter. He talked about it in his post-game press conference:
Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA Content Policy
In the end, Wednesday's game wasn't as close as the 120-108 final score would suggest.
With 5:40 to go in the third the Blazers were up 33 and the starters were pulled. Brandon Roy was so confident of the win he asked his coach if--as long as the lead stayed safe--he could remain out. Roy spent the fourth quarter in the trainer's room, receiving treatment on his sore hamstring. Alarmists, be calm—Roy could've played. He talked about the evening, and the lingering pain in his hamstring:
Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA Content Policy
Roy did most of his work early, scoring the Blazers' first eight points. He finished the quarter with 12, and the game with 24.
The Blazers followed Roy's hot hand, and finished the game shooting 60% from the field.
While Roy sat, Jerryd Bayless has a difficult time orchestrating the offense. Although he finished with 12 points, Bayless handed out just two assists, three turnovers, and managed to whip up a number of ill-advised shots, poor passes, and frustrated fouls. During this starter-less stretch, Portland's lead was whittled from 33 to 11. Coach McMillan then plugged in his starters (sans Roy) and things cooled out.
Rudy Fernandez, returning from back surgery, played for the first time since December 1st. When Fernandez checked in, the crowd's welcoming standing ovation was every bit as loud as anything in Friday's raucous Laker game. Fernandez's on-court response, however, lacked the same fervor. Despite going one-for-five from the field, and missing all four three-point attempts, Fernandez says he feels good. He just needs time to "get his breath" back. After the game he addressed the hungry media:
Video removed after 72 hours in accordance with NBA Content Policy
Steve Blake, who is still presumably trying to gain back the eight pounds he recently lost to pneumonia, looked much better than he did Sunday, hitting three of five from downtown.
For the Bucks, rookie Jodie Meeks scored a career-high 21. Center Andrew Bogut, who many in the local media predicted would trample the Blazers' complete lack a inside presence, had a double-double (10 points and 11 rebounds), but at no point did he ever look dominating.
Perhaps most disappointing was the play of heralded rookie Brandon Jennings, who has been slumping. Jennings scored 12 to go with seven assists, but looked at times like he was phoning it in. Most of Jennings' shots came from deep and his defense was lackadaisical (Steve Blake shook him in the lane). His past 55-point performance was practically impossible to imagine.
"Jennings is whack," someone nearby blurted out. And Wednesday—along with the rest of the Bucks—he certainly was.
NOTES:
120 points was the Portland's second highest scoring output this season (they scored 122 against Chicago), and 65 tied the high for a half. LaMarcus Aldridge finished with 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Also, a blip on the pre-game radar: Kevin Pritchard, Tom Penn and other members of the Blazer brain trust were congregating in a different place than usual during early warm-ups: front-row, watching the Bucks warm up. As we all know, should the Blazers find a deal that makes sense, they'd love to pick up a big man. As the Bucks team headed back into the locker room, Pritchard and co. remained, as did Milwaukee centers Dan Gadzuric and Francisco Elson. The duo continued shooting for some time, working up quite a lather, in what could've been a defacto audition. Elson seemed to focus on his range, taking a number of deep twos and threes, though he certainly wouldn't have been considered spot on. In the real audition--if indeed it were so--Gadzuric faired much better. In 14 minutes he scored seven points and grabbed eight rebounds. Elson nabbed only the DNP.
Finally--and this is hearsay, but too awesome to pass up--I'm hoping readers who watched the game at home can add their two cents. As told to me by my bartender friend Cedar, who watched the game on CSN: "Mike and Mike were talking about shoe size... They're going on about the different players and Barrett says 'Greg Oden wears a 20 and LaMarcus Aldridge wears an 18,' to which Rice responds, 'I'm not trying to buy a condom!'" Wow. Awesome.
Reader Comments (15)
He was trying to say "Condo," but I heard "Condom" too. All those adult beverages make speech a bit difficult for the Wild One.
"CONDO". Rice didn't want to buy a "condo", not a "condom". . . unfortunately. . . "Codom" would have been quite a bit more entertaining and perhaps more fitting of Rice's often-awkward personality.
Mike Rice only has eyes for Blake.
I love the wild one
"Kevin Pritchard, Tom Penn and other members of the Blazer brain trust were congregating in a different place than usual during early warm-ups: front-row, watching the Bucks warm up."
That's a touch misleading. Those guys sit and watch other teams warm up quite often.
I was watching on CSN as well and I hear the following paraphrased exchange that began with them discussing Roy's new kicks:
MB: Steve Blake wears size 13.
MR: Ah, that's perfect. I need to get a pair.
MB: Aldridge is an 18, and I think Greg wears a 20.
MR: I didn't say I needed to buy a condom.
I've got it taped at home and can check it tonight.
Casey-
I asked a person who is normally around at that time, and was told they normally don't sit there, at least for that long. And the way Elson and Gadzuric stuck around long after the rest of the team left seemed a bit odd. But I don't mean to suggest knowledge of any inside information, or anything more than just what I saw happening.
abercrombie london
Abercrombie and fitch london
Abercrombie fitch london
abercrombie & fitch london
tiffany uk
tiffany online
tiffany outlet
Abercrombie outlet
Abercrombie fitch outlet
Abercrombie and fitch outlet
Notice that the Chinese know how to do a stimulus package, while no one in power seems to know how to do a stimulus package here in the US.
ed hardy
outlet
abercrombie fitch wrote this article.have always been reading and writing texts like this in blogs.
this post very nice!michael kors watches replicas
to everyone.hollister uk I just watched videos like this in research in all areas
Colour plus texture for the lips. Stands out on the runway. Simmers on the street! What made M·A·C famous.