BLAZERS BEAT SPURS IN SAN ANTONIO

The line on the Portland Trailblazers in recent years has been that once the NBA’s youngest team got some maturity under their belt they’d be a championship contender.  It may be happening sooner than anyone expected.  On Wednesday night the Blazers took a big step toward securing home court advantage in the playoffs with a 95-83 road victory over the San Antonio Spurs.  Houston, Portland and San Antonio are now tied for third place with identical 50-28 records.

Things didn’t start out so good for Portland, trailing 33-16 at the end of the first quarter.  The Blazers came roaring back in the second quarter, however, and all but pulled even with the Spurs by outscoring them 31-16 in the period.  The Blazers completely controlled the second half en route to a surprisingly easy victory. 

Brandon Roy led the Blazers with 26 points, with LaMarcus Aldridge contributing 20.  ‘Sixth man’ extraordinaire Travis Outlaw added 12 points, with Steve Blake scoring 11.  Joel Przybilla continued his solid play in the paint with a monstrous 17 rebound performance.  Roger Mason, starting in place of injured Manu Ginobili, led the Spurs with 18 points with his backcourt mate Tony Parker adding 17.  Michael Finley with 11 points was the only other Spur to score in double digits.

In addition to winning the game, Portland won the season series from San Antonio 3-1 which could prove significant as a tiebreaker in the tightly packed Western Conference.  After the game, Brandon Roy praised his team’s performance in a tough venue for visiting teams:

"We won at one of the toughest teams in the league, in April, and they needed a win. So we got to use it if we want it to be something special."

While the Spurs have lost four of six, Portland has been one of the league’s hottest teams since the All Star break and have won seven of their last ten.  Tonight’s victory was the team’s fiftieth of the season which center Greg Oden suggested was a huge milestone for the young Blazers:

"Getting 50 games, that's a big goal. We just want to keep on winning, trying to get home court for the playoffs."

Portland has a big challenge on deck as the Los Angeles Lakers invade the Rose Garden on Friday night in a contest certain to have postseason intensity.  The Blazers head to Los Angeles on Saturday to play the Clippers before hosting the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night.  The Spurs host the Utah Jazz on Friday before heading West for games at Sacramento on Sunday and Golden State on Monday.