Trail Blazers get stuck in 2nd gear, fall to Timberwolves 113-121
121. 86. 113. 34. Final
The Portland Trail Blazers came out of the gate less than inspired on defense, something that plagued them all game and was the largest contributor to their 113-121 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Trail Blazers had their 5-game winning streak snapped, and experienced their first full game of the post-Wesley Matthews portion of the season.
Recap
The Trail Blazers started with a modest lead. LaMarcus Aldridge was feeling it, Nicolas Batum had a few threes, as did some other Blazers, and while not everything was peachy keen, they led 30-29 after the first quarter, despite Minnesota scoring on nine of their last 11 possessions, and despite being slaughtered on the offensive glass.
The Timberwolves kept piling it on in the second, and the Trail Blazers’ defense was rottener than yesterday’s compost. With the game tied, the Trail Blazers hit three quick threes, and faster than a timber wolf howls at the moon, they were up 49-40 with five minutes to go in the half. They did allow another run — a double-digit lead would have been in the cards had the defense tightened up a little, but they settled for a 55-51 halftime lead.
The third opened with an 8-0 Timberwolves run before a Batum fallaway finally stopped it. Portland’s defense… wasn’t very good. Minnesota’s Kevin Martin and Andrew Wiggins were dominating, and Portland allowed open shot after open shot. It was tough to stay enthusiastic as the Wolves shooting got hot, but the Trail Blazers pushed back a bit. After being down by as many as eight, Portland faced a 81-77 deficit heading into the fourth quarter.
The Trail Blazers punched first in the final period and tied it at 83. “Okay,” we were thinking, “This is when the Trail Blazers really turn it on!” Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, and they found themselves behind by seven with two minutes to go. The last few minutes saw Damian Lillard score 11 points in 49 seconds, but it was punctuated by Timberwolves free throws. The clock hit zero, and the Trail Blazers walked away defeated, 121-113.
Players
LaMarcus Aldridge faded into the background like a beige couch. You know he’s on another level when 21 and eight is “beige couch” territory, but that’s how good he is. He’s been fumbling more with the ball lately than we’ve seen in recent memory, even in the games immediately following the torn ligament in his left thumb.
Damian Lillard scored a ton in that final minute, but 32-7-8 with a steal overall is a far sight better than the five points he managed just a few short games ago. Unfortunately, that killer instinct we saw early on has been quite absent in recent weeks.
Nicolas Batum had yet another 15+ point game. That’s three straight games scoring 15+, the first time he’s done that since a year ago this month. He also added seven boards and three assists. The Trail Blazers would really appreciate it if he could keep this (or something like it) up for the rest of the year.
Robin Lopez had three blocks to compliment his seven points and five boards.
Arron Afflalo shot poorly overall, but was 3-5 from distance and had 14 points. He’s not totally comfortable with the Trail Blazers yet. Add to that his switching from a reserve to a starting role, and it’s easy to see why it might take a few more games to figure out how much he can help.
Chris Kaman had eight and six, with a number of puzzling possessions that explained his four turnovers.
Notes
- The Trail Blazers could have won this game. They should have won this game. Yes, Minnesota shot really, exceptionally well, but a large part of that was the Trail Blazers’ lack of defensive intensity.
- The 121 points the Trail Blazers gave up was a season-high.
- Head Coach Terry Stotts is still tinkering with the lineup to learn how best to use his newer players and how to proceed after Matthews’ injury. C.J. McCollum and Alonzo Gee both played, but neither Meyers Leonard or Joel Freeland saw the court.
- The Trail Blazers’ bench scored 22 points. Gary Neal scored 27 points by himself off the Timberwolves’ bench.
- Portland was out-rebounded by Minnesota 45-36.
The Trail Blazers now travel back to Portland for a few days rest before hosting James Harden and the much maligned Houston Rockets on Wednesday.