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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – It seems the only team the Portland Trail
Blazers can beat lately is Golden State.
Damon Stoudamire scored 23 points and Steve Smith had 18 to lead seven players in double figures as the Blazers routed the Warriors for the second time in five days, 116-88 Tuesday night.
"It's good for us to get a win, no matter who it is," said Smith, whose team had lost 11 of its previous 17. "I think our confidence is there. We're not looking to get confidence against Golden State, we're just trying to win every game, no matter who it is."
The Blazers pulled within a half-game of Dallas, the No. 5 team in the Western Conference playoff picture. With four games left, they still can catch Utah, 2½ games ahead, for the fourth spot and homecourt advantage in the first round.
"To me, it matter doesn't matter who we play in the first round
of the playoffs," Rasheed Wallace said.
The blowout wins against the Warriors aside, it has been a
difficult week and a half for the Blazers. They lost their other
four games, had Shawn Kemp leave for drug rehabilitation and lost Bonzi Wells for the rest of the season with a torn ligament in his left knee.
"We had a lot of distractions, and it was a tough week," said
Detlef Schrempf. "If we can just get together, we can make a good
run heading into the playoffs."
Antawn Jamison scored 27 points on 9-of-23 shooting, and Adonal
Foyle had 13 rebounds to lead the Warriors, who have lost eight in
a row and 26 of 28 since the All-Star break.
Portland, which shot 54 percent, won its four games against Golden State by a combined 98 points. The Blazers also swept the series last season.
"I wouldn't count those guys out at all," Jamison said of the
Blazers. "They're really playing with peace of mind. I don't care
if they're the second seed or the eighth seed ... I've really got
them going deep into the playoffs."
Portland jumped to a big lead early, let the Warriors back into
it, then pulled away again for a 16-point halftime lead.
A 3-pointer by Stoudamire, followed by a layup and 3-pointer
from Smith, put the Blazers ahead 76-54 with five minutes to go in
third quarter.
"It's not like we're trying to figure too many things out
here," Portland coach Mike Dunleavy said. "We've been performing
defensively, we've had good energy, good intensity. The next part
of it, in order for us to be playing at the highest level that we
can play, is to be just banging down shots."
The Blazers cut right through the Warriors' defense in the opening eight minutes, making 11 of their first 12 shots. Arvydas
Sabonis blocked Vonteego Cummings' layup attempt and passed to Scottie Pippen, who fed Rasheed Wallace for a two-handed reverse dunk. After a turnover, Stoudamire hit a 3-pointer to give the Blazers a 26-10 lead.
Portland seemed to relax, however, missing its next 10 shots, and Golden State went on a 20-4 run to tie it at 30.
The only Warriors player who could find the basket after that was Paul McPherson, who had 11 points in the second quarter. Jamison went scoreless for the last 8:59 of the period.
The Blazers went on a 14-2 run, and Stoudamire passed to Dale
Davis for a dunk just before halftime to push the lead to 55-39.
Golden State didn't get closer than 12 the rest of the way.
Game notes
Wallace scored 11 points in the first 7:41 of the game,
then had just one the rest of the way. ... Golden State players
have missed a combined 383 games with injuries this season, and
McPherson nearly became the latest casualty, spraining his right
ankle late in the second quarter. But he returned and finished with
17 points. ... Jamison had been in a mini-slump, averaging only
15.3 points his previous four games.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Golden State Clubhouse
Portland Clubhouse
RECAPS
Cleveland 101
Orlando 78
Miami 83
Philadelphia 81
Milwaukee 105
Chicago 84
Denver 100
Houston 99
San Antonio 91
Dallas 79
Portland 116
Golden State 88
Minnesota 104
Vancouver 91
LA Lakers 106
Phoenix 80
Sacramento 116
LA Clippers 109
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