Trailblazers rip Lakers behind Brandon Roy

Following his team’s narrow victory over the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves this weekend, Brandon Roy admitted that the Portland Trailblazers might have had their focus elsewhere—on Monday night’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers at the Rose Garden Arena.  The Blazers’ emphasis on the matchup with the Lakers definitely showed, as the team put on one of their best overall performances of the season as they rolled up a 60-38 halftime lead before coasting to a 111-94 victory. 

Brandon Roy led the Blazers with 27 points, while Joel Przybilla and LaMarcus Aldridge each posted ‘double/double’s’.  Przybilla had 12 points and 18 rebounds, while Aldrige added 16 points and 13 boards.  Travis Outlaw continued his strong play off the bench with 22 points.  Kobe Bryant scored 26 points to lead the Lakers, while Pau Gasol went for 18 points and 13 boards.  Reserve Jordan Farmer with the only other Laker in double figures, with 12 points.

The only downside to Portland’s victory was a scary looking injury to reserve point guard Rudy Fernandez.  Fernandez was fouled hard in the third quarter and was removed from the court on a stretcher wearing a neck brace.  It was a scene that would have been more at home in a prizefight than a basketball game, but the good news is that X-rays were negative and Fernandez appears to be OK.  After the game, Brandon Roy talked about the difficulty of dealing with the situation:

“Just the way it played out -- it's hard to watch your teammate over there laying down and they're bringing out stretchers. That was a tough moment for all of us."

The Blazers have now won 12 straight games at home, and are 27-5 at the Rose Garden this year.  Afterwards, Portland coach Nate McMillan commended his team on their big victory:

"It was a great win. We beat the best team in the league. And at this time of the season, with so many teams jockeying for the playoffs, beating the Lakers makes it even a bigger win."

Los Angeles has one of the best road records in the NBA at 21-9, though they’ve now lost three straight games on the road.  Portland has been a nightmare for them in recent years, having lost seven straight games to the Blazers in the ‘Rose City’.  That’s their longest road losing streak against any team in the NBA.