Trail Post - A Portland Trail Blazers Blog

The tenor of the game was different from the beginning. It didn’t seem like the Rockets were any sort of different team, nor did it seem like the Blazers were any different either. Both played their game, but this time the shooting percentages equalized and the better team won.

It’s amazing how far luck can take you. It guided Houston to that romp on Saturday night, as every player torched the nets. I expected the crowd to take out some aggression on the Rockets during warm-ups too. Instead, the Rose Garden audience one-upped it. They ignored the Rockets with a “Let’s Go Blazers” cheer during the player introductions. Cold-blooded, guys.

“Sorry you only got 6 shots Yao, but you can’t cage a pit bull.”

Of course, when the game got started and Batum blocked Artest, we knew this game would be different. Where last game Adelman soundly beat McMillan in the coaching department, it was Nate this time throwing out crazy lineups. It was Nate with timeouts down the stretch of the game.

Brandon Roy put together a Brandon Roy performance. Remember when I said Brandon shouldn’t take more than 20 shots in a game? I’m dumb. Take as many shots as you like, Brandon, as long as they’re in the flow of the offense. He started the game by passing to his rejuvenated teammates and they responded by nailing threes. It’s amazing how open the offense becomes when Blake can knock down a couple. After the lane opened, it was just a field day for Roy. He did whatever he pleased, and hit clutch shots just because he could.

LaMarcus remembered there was a playoff game going and absolutely took over the game for a few stretches. I know it’s cliche to compare him to Rasheed Wallace, but that stretch of made baskets in the second quarter reminded me of playoff games I watched as a kid where Sheed would use all his back to the basket talent to demolish teams such as the Jazz and Timberwolves. Even more impressive was the amount of rebounds LaMarcus tallied. It’s tough to beat the Blazers when LaMarcus and Brandon combine for more than 60 points.

The supporting cast rocked, of course. I don’t feel like getting into it, but you know what happened. They made shots, they played well, and they didn’t screw up. Not to mention, they had the two biggest game changers. The first was that dunk by Greg Oden off of a rebound where he actually mis-timed his jump, but instead grabbed the ball out of the air, pumped it, and then threw it home, making Yao Ming’s head explode like a roman candle. The other one, of course, was Travis’ incredible steal from Luis Scola for the dunk late in the fourth quarter. That broke open the game and changed it from a possession for possession game to a “foul and hope” game. (Which turned out pretty well, as a bunch of Blazers missed free throws, and Aaron Brooks made some ridiculous shots. They could have won if their coach hadn’t dug them a hole. Way to preserve those time outs, Rick.)

One of the biggest issues from Game 1 was the refereeing, or more specifically, the fans’ treatment of the refereeing, and the media’s treatment of the fans’ treatment of the refereeing, or more specifically the fans’ treatment of the media’s treatment of the fans’ treatment of the refereeing, etc. Well, the refereeing last night sucked. It wasn’t nearly as insidious or one-sided as the first game, but it was bad. However, it was a fair type of horrible. There were makeup fouls galore on both ends, and constant reversed calls. Also, the style of calling benefited the Blazers greatly, as they were calling ticky-tack fouls at the top of the key, which allowed guys like Brandon and LaMarcus to get free as they weren’t pushed off their spots by Battier, Artest, and Scola. Still, Yao Ming would have to shank someone with a jagged piece of glass to pick up a fifth foul.

Finally, it was damn sad to see Dikembe Mutombo leave the floor last night. He’s one of the all-time great centers and one of the greatest characters in the game’s history. I hope that the injury wasn’t career ending, but if it was, what a hell of a career. Get well soon, Deke.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS