Portland, Oregon - The Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Sacramento Kings by 9 points on Monday night. The Trail Blazers, however, avoided a similar fate Tuesday night by manhandling the young Kings en route to a dominating 101-79 win.
Portland got another strong performance from veteran Gerald Wallace, who led a 13-man Blazer rotation by scoring a game-high 25 points on 8-11 shooting. He also grabbed 8 boards and had 5 assists and 2 blocks.
LaMarcus Aldridge once again finished with a good night, scoring 24 points along with 8 rebounds and a steal. Fellow big man Marcus Camby pulled down 9 boards, blocked 2 shots, and dished out 3 assists.
With the huge lead, Nate McMillan was able to rest his starters and go deep into his bench, an important advantage for a Blazers team in its second game of three to be played in four days.
Rookie Nolan Smith (Duke) was 2-2 from the field in his 7 minutes of action, while veteran center Kurt Thomas gave the Trail Blazers 18 important minutes on the court, something he'll have to do regularly throughout the compacted season.
In a nice moment for a young guard, Elliot Williams appeared in his first NBA game after Portland drafted him in the first round in 2010. Williams sat out the entire 2010 season with a knee injury. He didn't accumulate any statistics in his 2 minutes of action, but getting on the court was a big first step.
Portland wasn't without some awful shooting performances from the field, though. Jamal Crawford was 2-11 off the bench, Wes Matthews was 4-14, Raymond Felton was 2-8, and Nicolas Batum was 4-12.
Former Trail Blazers small forward Travis Outlaw, who was once the best sixth man off Portland's bench a few years ago, provided no help for the Kings. In 24 minutes off the bench, Outlaw was 0-5 from the field and finished with 2 points and 7 rebounds. The Kings claimed Outlaw after the New Jersey Nets used their Amnesty Clause to waive him after he signed a 5-year, $35 million contract prior to the 2010 season.
Player of the Game:
Gerald Wallace: 25 points (8-11), 8 rebounds, 5 assists.
Worst Performance of the Game:
Wes Matthews: 4-14 shooting (0-5 from beyond the arc).
Best Man off the Bench:
Kurt Thomas: 6 points (3-4), 2 rebounds, 3 blocks, 1 assist.
What's next:
Denver @ Portland, Thursday, 7 p.m. PT.
© 2011 Max Price - All Rights Reserved.
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