Portland Trail Blazers ease to 108-93 win over Los Angeles Clippers
The Portland Trail Blazers registered their fourth consecutive victory by cruising past the visiting Los Angeles Clippers 108-93 on Thursday night at the Rose Garden. LaMarcus Aldridge and Wesley Matthews each scored a team-high 28 points as Portland won
their 24th game of the 2010-11 season.
Portland Head Coach Nate McMillan appreciated the breath-taking performance of Aldridge after the game. He said, "Most players play one or the other. They are a good defender or they score. He can do both. You don't want to take his perimeter game away,
but he has committed to playing the paint, and he's done a great job."
Rudy Fernandez played well as he contributed 17 points, three assists and three rebounds in the Trail Blazers ninth win in their last 10 meetings with the Clippers. Andre Miller totaled 15 points and grabbed seven assists and eight rebounds for the victors.
Eric Gordon did all he could, as he led the Clippers with a game-high 35 points in the defeat. Gordon also made a career-high seven three-pointers. Blake Griffin ended with 20 points and a game-high 18 rebounds for the Clippers, who had won six of their
last seven games of the current season. However, The Blazers did a nice job of blanketing Blake Griffin, who made only 6-for-17 from the field and committed five turnovers.
Point guard Baron Davis ended with 16 points and six assists in Clippers 26th defeat of the 2010-11 season.
Match Analysis
Although Gordon played one of his most stellar games in a Clippers uniform, yet the athletic Portland Trail Blazers were able to defend their home court in front of over 20,000 basketball fans.
The Clippers small forward Nicolas Batum said that one possible reason for their defeat might be their tiredness, "We were so tired. Very, very tired. You watch the first five minutes, you could tell, no? Guys had played 40, 42, 46 minutes last night, and
we are missing [Marcus] Camby, so we have one less rotation guy. However, this team has heart. Even when we're tired, people step up."
The Blazers missed seven of their first eight shots to fall behind 16-2. However, the Clippers slowly began to build their lead, taking a 27-23 lead into the second. Portland was right back into the game in the second quarter, as they controlled every aspect
of this one by limiting turnovers and playing tenacious shots. The trail Blazers managed to take a 55-50 advantage into the locker room.
The Blazers extended their offensive play to the third quarter and found a way to expand their lead. Batum nailed back-to-back three pointers to send Portland into the fourth quarter with an 84-71 lead. Fernandez scored the basket of the night with a minute
remaining in the game. He collided with Aldridge, but somehow ended up with the ball and flipped in a running 13-footer as the shot clock expired. Aldridge’s alley-oop dunk shot sealed the home victory for the Trail Blazers.
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