|
 The Trail Blazers took another step forward Sunday night at the
Moda Center, holding the Denver Nuggets to .396 shooting and 44
second-half points in a 116-100 victory.
Portland (4-3) entered the night ranked fourth in the NBA in both
opponents' scoring (93.7) and opponents' field-goal percentage
(.415).
"We've answered the bell as far as what we need to do defensively,"
said guard Wesley Matthews, who scored 21 points and grabbed six
rebounds. "We've done a good job defensively. Some nights, our
offense hasn't been there. It was pretty good tonight."
The Blazers won the game at the 3-point line, making 16 of 31
attempts (.516). Denver was only 5 for 16 from beyond the arc.
"A lot of that came off of good ball movement," Portland coach Terry
Stotts said. "When we move the ball, it creates rhythm to the game.
Shooting is all about rhythm. That's the way we want to play. If we
can get open 3's, we want to take them."
 Forward LaMarcus Aldridge collected 28 points and nine rebounds to
lead six Blazers scoring in double figures.
"We still haven't figured out how to get to LaMarcus and cut him
down," said Denver coach Brian Shaw.
"In the playoffs last year, he was a threat to score every time he
touched the ball," said Denver forward Kenneth Faried, who scored a
team-high 19 points. "That turnaround jumper is no joke."
Center Chris Kaman, who had 12 points, eight rebounds and five
blocked shots off the bench for the Blazers.
Guards Arron Afflalo and Ty Lawson tallied 18 apiece for the Nuggets
(1-5), who lost their fifth straight game.
"I liked the pace of our offense," Shaw said. "Our initial defensive
stance was pretty good, but too often we gave up the offensive
rebound, which just about every time they turned into a wide-open
3."
Matthews buried his fifth 3-pointer of the first half at the buzzer
to stake Portland to a 64-56 halftime lead. Matthews scored 19
points and Aldridge 16 in the half for the Blazers. Faried and
Afflalo each had 11 points for Denver at the break.
The difference was at the 3-point line, where the Blazers were 8 of
16, the Nuggets 3 of 5.
Aldridge stayed hot, scoring 10 quick points as Portland upped its
advantage to 80-67 late in the third quarter. It was 85-73 heading
into the final period.
[to top of second column] |
When Portland guard Steve Blake buried a 3-pointer for a 96-79
advantage with 8:15 remaining, the verdict appeared decided. But
Denver didn't fold, scoring nine in a row to get back to within
96-88 with 6:26 to play.
The Nuggets hung around but could never get the margin less than
eight the rest of the way.
"Our performance was real up and down," Kaman said. "It wasn't as
consistent as we would want. We could have beaten that team by 20
had we kept the pressure on them and focused and concentrated."
The teams traded blows early, but the Blazers used a 6-0 run to
break an 18-18 tie and go in front 24-18 and took a 36-27 edge into
the second quarter.
Denver scored the first seven points of the second period to trim
the margin to 36-34, but the Blazers took control again and
increased the lead to 57-45 with four minutes left in the half.
NOTES: Portland F Nicolas Batum left the game with one minute
remaining with an apparent leg injury. ... G Wesley Matthews
attempted career-high 13 3-point attempts, making 5. ... There was a
moment of silence before the game for Trail Blazer fan Sandy
Zickefoose, 67, who died Thursday night after suffering a heart
attack at Portland's game vs. Dallas. Blazer coaches and players
warmed up with a T-shirt with "Sandy" printed across the chest.
"It's a small gesture when someone loses their life," Portland coach
Terry Stotts said. "There's a lot of sadness and grief. It's a way
for us to show the family we are thinking of her." ... The Nuggets
were without F Darrell Arthur, suspended for one game for a flagrant
foul in Friday's loss to Cleveland. ... Portland, which had 27
assists, has recorded at least 20 or more in each of its first seven
games for the first time since 1993-94.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
