James Harden explodes for 44, Trail Blazers fall to Rockets
By David MacKay
34. Final. 110. 169. 95
The Portland Trail Blazers (minus LaMarcus Aldridge and Robin Lopez) fell to the Houston Rockets as James Harden nearly matched his career-high.
Recap
As anticipated, this was a rough night for the Trail Blazers. They led through most of the first quarter as everyone got their bearings, but once James Harden got going there was no stopping him. He had 19 points in the first quarter to lead the Rockets to a 37-33 lead.
He continued his onslaught in the second quarter, where the Trail Blazers were ultimately outscored by 16 points. The absence of Aldridge (illness) and Lopez (hand) was too much for the Trail Blazers to overcome, as each “next man up” was sent straight back down by the Rockets. The deficit was 20 at the half, 53-73.
Things got a little chippy in the second half, as C.J. McCollum and Jason Terry received offsetting technicals after an exchange of four-letter words. Frustration was setting in. The Trail Blazers would channel that frustration to go on a 14-3 run, only to have it quashed by none other than Harden. The Rockets’ lead remained 20 heading into the fourth, 76-96.
The fourth quarter was almost entirely garbage time. Rockets Head Coach Kevin McHale briefly brought his starters back in under the guise of stopping a Portland mini-run, but primarily wanted to give Harden the opportunity to set a new career-high. He would not, finishing two points short at 44, but the Rockets walked away with a decisive 15-point victory.
Players
Damian Lillard did about all he could, but was held to almost exclusively difficult shots. With no Aldridge, he became the primary focal point of a Houston defense that remembered their last meeting all too well. Lillard finished with 18 points, but more turnovers (6) than assists (3).
C.J. McCollum went to work in garbage time, scoring a season-high 17 points, with a career-high three assists, a season-high three rebounds, and a career-high three steals. It was far and away McCollum’s best game of the year.
Wesley Matthews took a backseat on offense to spend his energy guarding Harden. Although he only took 10 shots, he made half of them for a total of 14 points. As can be expected when guarding Harden, Matthews spent much of the evening battling the officials as well.
Meyers Leonard got the start at power forward in place of Aldridge, putting forth a solid performance. He scored the Trail Blazers first five points and had eight in the first quarter. His defense was respectable too. Until the bench emptied in the final quarter, he was the only Trail Blazer with a positive plus-minus. He finished the game with 13 points.
Steve Blake came up with a couple big threes, but was one of many Trail Blazers to lose the ball in the jaws of Houston’s defense. Chris Kaman also contributed well off the bench, but no other Trail Blazers stood out as particularly helpful.
Notes
The game got so out of hand that Victor Claver got his first minutes of the season. He got to finish an alley-oop slam fro Will Barton that had to feel good after being firmly parked on the pine for the last 28 games.
No Trail Blazer reached 20 points, but they did have 22 turnovers as a team. Harden and Corey Brewer each tallied five steals as they harassed Portland’s discombobulated offense.
Surprisingly, Nicolas Batum only took three shots in over 24 minutes, despite the absence of Aldridge. The Trail Blazers need him to be more aggressive; especially while their scoring options are limited. He had just two points.
The Trail Blazers have little time to rest before taking on the Oklahoma City Thunder tomorrow night in OKC at 5:00 p.m. PST.