Portland Ease Past Lifeless Wizards
Wallace hits 28 as Portland thwart Wizards
Jordan Crawford and Kevin Seraphin were the only ones to score 10+ points for Washington, going for 22 points together. Given this situation, the Wizards could only lose the Blazers clash. Portland knocked them 111-76 at the Rose Garden to claim their seventh success in the past ten games.
With Gerard Wallace scoring 28 points and Nicolas Batum and LaMarcus Aldridge bringing 22, each, Trail Blazers managed to win every each quarter and extend their lead almost exponentially. Thus, the home side went six points adrift in the first quarter but started the second half with a 17-point advantage following a 27-16 second term rally. But instead of slowing it down, Nate McMillan’s side went even further and left sleeping Wizards 15 points behind them at the end of the third quarter and 32 overall.
Finally, Washington were unable to grab at least a fourth-quarter consolation, conceding the last term to three points, 17-20, and leave Portland with their 32nd loss on the road. Washington’s away season record is 1-32, the worst in the league. Their most efficient player was John Wall who left the Garden with… nine points, seven assists, three rebounds as well as three steals.
Apart from his 28-pointer, Wallace, by contrast, came up also with eight rebounds, four steals, three assists and one block. Batum’s 40-minute showing brought 22 points, 12 rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block, while Aldridge, who scored the same number of points, had six rebounds, two blocks and one assist.
Starter’s Andre Miller great performance included 11 assists, five rebounds, one steal and four points. Finally, Wesley Matthews left the Garden with 15 points, four steals, three assists and two rebounds. Portland’s bench added 20 points, ten of which being scored by Rudy Fernandez who also had four rebounds and one assist. Chris Johnson came off the bench to add seven more points and pick three rebounds, while Armon Johnson, who played just four minutes, scored two.
Brandon Roy’s 20-minute intervention helped him convert a free-throw. He would go instead for five rebounds, three of which offensive ones, three assists and two steals. Patrick Mills, who played just five minutes, finished scoreless, while Marcus Camby did not play. Batum and Matthews were the only ones to convert two three-pointers, Fernandez going for one out of seven attempts. The win over Washington is Blazers’ 25th home one.
On the other side, Wizards could barely score 47 points in the last three quarters. They did have a better start, but they would also lose pace as the game progressed, allowing the hosts score almost 28-point average per quarter. Crawford scored the most points for the visitors, 12, going in the same time for four rebounds, four assists and one steal.
Reserve Seraphin came up with ten points and three rebounds, while the rest of the players could barely add nine points. In fact, Trevor Booker and John Wall were the only ones to score nine points. JaVale McGee had eight points, seven rebounds, one assists, one steal and one block, while Mustafa Shakur came off the bench to score the same number of points plus one rebound.
Apart from his nine-pointer, Wall managed to deliver instead seven rebounds, grab three rebounds and make three steals. Reserve Maurice Evans scored just six points in 29 minutes, missing six out of eight FGMs, but picking three rebounds instead, while Cartier Martin (13 minutes) had three points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Finally, Othyus Jeffers and Hamady Ndiaye added two points, each, with the first one missing three three-point throws and the last one converting two free-throws. Evans, Martin and Crawford were the only ones to convert four three-pointers together.
Said the man of the night Wallace: “We’re getting out and running. We’re running the court in transition and we are able to force the turnovers and get to the basket. When things are going like that it makes it a whole lot easier for everybody.”
The loss against Portland is Washington’s 52nd of the season. Wizards lie second from the bottom within the Eastern Conference with a 17-52 record. On contrast, Trail Blazers go sixth in the West Conference with a 41-30 season record, but with plenty of chances to reach the fifth position. Denver are right above Portland with 42 wins and 29 defeats.
Washington play Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday, while Portland will next play leaders San Antonio Spurs.
NBA next fixtures:
Charlotte Bobcats – Indiana Pacers
Boston Celtics – Memphis Grizzlies
Philadelphia 76ers – Atlanta Hawks
Cleveland Cavaliers – New Jersey Nets
Houston Rockets – Golden State Warriors
Phoenix Suns – Toronto Raptors
Oklahoma City Thunder – Utah Jazz
New York Knicks – Orlando Magic
Milwaukee Bucks – Sacramento Kings
Detroit Pistons – Miami Heat
Denver Nuggets – San Antonio Spurs
Los Angeles Clippers – Washington Wizards11
