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 "We turned it up in the third quarter, built a lead and imposed
our will," said Trail Blazers guard Wesley Matthews, who scored a
game-high 20 points. "That's what we need going into the (All-Star)
break, a momentum game like that."
The Blazers shot 13-for-24 (54.2 percent) from the field in the
third quarter, the Lakers 7-for-23 (30.4 percent).
"They just made shots and we didn't," said Lakers coach Byron Scott,
whose team lost its 15th game in 16 outings. "They got a little bit
of everything they wanted. They got more aggressive at both ends.
That's what normally happens. Teams turn it up a notch, and we
haven't been able to match that intensity."
Forward LaMarcus Aldridge collected 18 points and 12 rebounds, guard
Damian Lillard added 15 points and eight assists, and forward
Nicolas Batum contributed seven points, eight rebounds and six
assists for the Blazers, who won for the fourth time in five games.
Los Angeles guard Jordan Clarkson had 17 points and grabbed six
rebounds, and guard Wayne Ellington scored 16 points and finished
with a career-high eight boards. The Lakers (13-40) lost their sixth
in a row.
 Portland (36-17) rolled despite shooting just 40.7 percent from the
field, including 10-for-30 from 3-point range. The Lakers shot only
36.6 percent from the field but were 7-for-16 (43.8 percent) from
beyond the arc.
"It was a good win to go into the break with," Portland coach Terry
Stotts said. "We did a lot of good things at both ends. Our defense
was pretty consistent throughout. We had 27 assists, and I liked our
ball movement. We shot 40 percent, but it was still a good offensive
night."
Portland enters the All-Star break with the same record as it did a
year ago when it finished 54-28. This season, Portland lost 35
man-games to injury compared to zero a year ago.
"This team is more confident than last year's," said Aldridge, who
will play in the fourth All-Star Game of his career Sunday at
Madison Square Garden. "We've shown good growth. We've had more
adversity to this point and coped with it well. That can only help
us down the stretch. We're in a good spot."
Lillard scored 11 first-half points and Matthews 10 to stake the
Blazers to a 54-46 lead at the break. Aldridge had eight first-half
points despite 2-for-11 shooting. The Lakers shot 37.5 percent from
the field in the half.
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Portland extended the difference to 77-56 midway through the third
quarter behind the play of Matthews, who scored 10 points in a
three-minute stretch. During that span, he also dived on the floor
for a steal and pitched the ball forward to Lillard for a fastbreak
dunk.
"That's who Wes is," Aldridge said. "He brings that toughness, that
energy, that scrappiness that we need. That set the tone for us."
Moments later, Portland's lead was 83-60, and the Lakers were
finished.
"The break will be good for all of our guys," Scott said, "just
getting away from basketball for a little while. Hopefully you come
back with a different sense of purpose."
NOTES: Portland is 3-0 against the Lakers this season, the first
time the Blazers beat Los Angeles three times in a season since
1996-97. ... F LaMarcus Aldridge has 12,009 points in his nine
seasons in Portland, ranking second on the franchise career scoring
list behind Clyde Drexler (18,040). ... Lakers G Nick Young
sustained an ankle injury in the third quarter. "It should be all
right after the break," Young said. ... Portland was without reserve
C Chris Kaman (ankle). Coach Byron Scott said he hadn't heard the
story about Young, who claims a dolphin tried to kill him on a trip
to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. "He's a black guy," Scott said, laughing.
"He wasn't even in the water. I don't believe that story. He'd have
gotten me better if he'd have said a shark. But a dolphin? Come on."
... Scott was asked how many people were named after him. "A few.
... I met a couple of fans who named their dog Byron. I didn't know
how to take that."
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