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 The Blazers matched a franchise record with 43 attempts from
beyond the arc and made a season-high 18, outscoring Philadelphia by
45 points on 3-pointers in dominating the 76ers 114-93 at Moda
Center.
"It was a good effort, wish we'd gotten a few more 3s up," Portland
coach Terry Stotts quipped.
Guards Damian Lillard (game-high 28 points) and Wesley Matthews (25)
did much of the damage as Portland won without Aldridge (upper
respiratory illness), Lopez (broken hand) and Kaman (whose wife was
expecting a baby).
Matthews was 7 of 14 from long distance, Lillard was 3 of 8, and six
other Blazers made at least one 3-pointer.
"They were "mostly good 3s," Stotts said of his team's shot
selection. "I don't care how many 3s we take as long as they're in
rhythm, preferably off the pass rather than the dribble, and in the
flow of the game."
Philadelphia coach Brett Brown said the 76ers' switching defense
failed, "and there were so many mental mistakes. ... Leaving
corners, shooting gaps, closing out with our hands at our thigh --
those are things we will learn from."
 Lillard said he made a conscious effort throughout the game to drive
and then pass the ball back outside.
"Once we got in the paint, they were really collapsing," he said of
the 76ers. "We were making the right plays. We were small and had a
lot of shooters on the floor."
Philadelphia couldn't keep pace from the outside; the 76ers were 3
of 14 from behind the 3-point line.
Portland was 42 of 88 from the field, going 24 of 45 on 2-point
attempts, with eight dunks and eight layups.
"They run their sets pretty well," 76ers guard Tony Wroten said.
"Having Damian, and having to react to his pick-and-roll opens
things up for them."
Matthews has made at least five 3-pointers in seven games this
season, and he leads the NBA with 90 baskets from beyond the arc.
Lillard, with 85 baskets from 3-point distance, is second in the
league.
"This was certainly a different kind of game, with Chris and Robin
and L.A. not being there," Stotts said.
Stotts, minus his usual low-post threat (Aldridge), reinvented his
starting lineup and improvised his player rotations.
Joel Freeland started at center, and Thomas Robinson got the start
at power forward. Stotts used guards Allen Crabbe and CJ McCollum
along with veteran Steve Blake, and gave frontcourt reserves Meyers
Leonard, Victor Claver and Dorell Wright prime-time duty.
Leonard, a 6-foot-11, third-year NBA player from England, responded
with a game- and career-high 17 rebounds, 11 in the first half. His
previous best rebounding game was 12; the 17 were the most by a
Blazer in a game this season.
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"Joel was terrific," Stotts said. "He was aggressive and made a
concerted effort to bother their shots. He had a presence. You know
he's there. This is the way he earned a spot in the rotation last
year. He plays within himself and plays very hard."
"Joel's been grinding and been under the radar a lot," Matthews
said. "He's found his niche."
The Blazers, returning home from a 3-1 trip, improved to 24-7
overall, 13-2 at home with their fifth win in a row at Moda Center,
and 13-1 against the Eastern Conference.
The 76ers, who had won two in a row, fell to 4-24, including 4-10 on
the road and 0-8 against the Western Conference.
Wroten led the Sixers with 22 points, and starting guard Michael
Carter-Williams added 17.
Brown, who expressed pleasure with his team's recent defense before
the game, watched as the Blazers calmly shot to a 61-51 halftime
lead. Portland took the lead for good at 14-12 midway through the
opening quarter.
Nicolas Batum and Matthews led the way early on offense. Batum had
10 of his 14 points in the first quarter, and Matthews scored nine
points in the second quarter.
The Blazers kept up the pace in the third quarter, making 5 of 11
from the line to lead 88-74 going into the final 12 minutes.
Lillard, after a quiet first half, scored 14 points in the third
quarter.
Philadelphia never got closer than 12 points in the final period.
NOTES: Philadelphia swingman Hollis Thompson sat out his third
straight game with an illness while F Furkan Aldemir suited up.
Aldemir went five minutes after missing the previous three games
with plantar fasciitis. ... In their two victories before Friday,
the 76ers allowed 88 and 87 points at Orlando and Miami
respectively. "Lately we've been playing pretty good defense," Brown
said. "We are in a little bit of a rhythm. We've got a little bit of
a thing going."
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