Gerald Wallace & LaMarcus Aldridge lead as Portland Trail Blazers beat Los Angeles Lakers: NBA Pt 2
Portland Trail Blazers came out with all guns blazing in the second half and turned the game in their favour. An early 10 – 2 blitz by the home team energized the crowd and shook up Los Angeles Lakers, who seemed a little lost
in the third period. The Lakers only managed 18 points in the quarter whilst the Trail Blazers piled on 32, that included a 10 – 0 burst towards the end. Therefore, Portland were in a position of strength heading into the 4th at 84 – 74.
A 10 point lead in the fourth quarter was by no means unassailable, but the energy and commitment of an inspired Trail Blazers outfit made the task near impossible for the Lakers. They put up a fight, but Portland were more than
capable of fighting back. The Trail Blazers never let Los Angeles get too close for comfort as the clock kept winding down, and in the end a resigned Lakers outfit had to endure the 107 – 96 score line.
It was a strong showing by Portland that left the Lakers with little or no answers on the night. One of the highlights of the game was a windmill dunk by Gerald Wallace in the open court and the forward spoke about it later.
"I think that was the game-changer," said Wallace, who joked that he only performed the dunk because teammate LaMarcus Aldridge promised he'd make one as well. Aldridge himself had a great night out and although he couldn’t make
a similar dunk, he was pleased with the way the team had performed.
"It's still early," Aldridge said. "It's always good to get off to a quick start, especially in a short season. But we know it's a process."
Lakers centre Andrew Bynum accepted that Los Angeles were second best in the game, especially after the interval. He blamed the loss on weak defence by his team.
"They came out in the second half and just beat us down the court in transition and that was it," Bynum said. "We've got to get back on D, that's huge for us."
The Trail Blazers were 46.1 percent from the field and the Lakers were 46.8 percent. The difference however was enormous from beyond the arc. While Portland connected on 41.7 percent of attempted 3-pointers, Los Angeles didn’t
get a single one. They were 0 for 11 from downtown and it really hurt them on the score card.
Otherwise, Los Angeles actually out-rebounded the Trail Blazers 47 to 39. They lost out in assists with 15 to 20 and were horrible with turnovers; their 14 a full ten times more than Portland Trail Blazers.
The welcome win puts Portland on the road for playoff contention.
Tags: