Post by DiamondThief on Feb 16, 2015 19:32:25 GMT -8
Portland Trail Blazers at Utah Jazz
What: The Blazers make their first appearance of the season in Salt Lake City to take on the Jazz.
When: Friday, Feb. 20 at 6 p.m. (pacific time)
Blazers Media: TV - CSNNW; Radio - Radio - Rip City Radio 620 AM.
Jazz Media: TV- Root Sports; Radio - KZNS.
Previous: Feb. 3 - Blazers 103, Jazz 102.
Schedule: March 5 - Blazers at Jazz. April 11 - Jazz at Blazers.
Note: This game thread is dedicated to the memory of Blazers great Jerome Kersey, who passed away on Feb. 18.
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The Blazers are 36-17, 13-12 on the road and 7-1 in division play. They are coming off a 102-86 home win over the Lakers on Feb. 11. They are averaging 102.6 (8th) and allowing 97.3 (7th). The Blazers, who won four of their last five, are first in the Northwest Division and third in the Western Conference.
The Jazz are 19-34, 10-15 at home and 3-4 in division play. They are coming off a 87-82 road loss to the Mavericks on Feb. 11. They are scoring 95.7 points per game (21st in the NBA) and allowing 98.2 (8th). The Jazz, who have won two of their last three, are fourth in the Northwest Division and 12th in the Western Conference.
Jazz's Rudy Gobert; Blazers' Robin Lopez
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
PROJECTED STARTERS
SF - 88 Nicolas Batum
PF - 12 LaMarcus Aldridge
C - 42 Robin Lopez
SG - 2 Wesley Matthews
PG - 0 Damian Lillard
RESERVES
G - 5 Steve Blake; 23 Allen Crabbe; 3 CJ McCollum
F - 1 Dorell Wright
C - 35 Chris Kaman; 11 Meyers Leonard
INJURIES
C - 19 Joel Freeland (shoulder) - out
C - 35 Chris Kaman (ankle) - questionable
INACTIVE
G - 4 Arron Afflalo (traded for)
F - 33 Alonzo Gee (traded for)
HEAD COACH
Terry Stotts
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Points - LaMarcus Aldridge 23.6
Rebounds - LaMarcus Aldridge 10.3
Assists - Damian Lillard 6.3
Blocks - Robin Lopez 1.6
Steals - Damian Lillard 1.5
FG - Chris Kaman 48.8%
FT - LaMarcus Aldridge 87.3%
3pt - Wesley Matthews 39.9%
UTAH JAZZ
PROJECTED STARTERS
SF - 20 Gordon Hayward
PF - 15 Derrick Favors
C - 27 Rudy Gobert
SG - 2 Joe Ingles
PG - 11 Dante Exum
RESERVES
G - 3 Trey Burke; 21 Ian Clark; 13 Elijah Millsap
F - 33 Trevor Booker; 40 Jeremy Evans; 23 Chris Johnson
INJURIES
G - 10 Alec Burks (shoulder) - out
F - 5 Rodney Hood (foot) - probable
F - 2 Joe Ingels (back) - questionable
INACTIVE
F - Grant Jerrett (traded for)
C - Kendrick Perkins (traded for)
HEAD COACH
Quin Snyder
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Points - Gordon Hayward 19.7
Rebounds - Derrick Favors 8.1
Assists - Trey Burke 4.7
Blocks - Rudy Gobert 2.2
Steals - Gordon Hayward 1.4
FG - Derrick Favors 54.0%
FT - Alec Burks 82.2%
3pt - Gordon Hayward 35.2%
ANGI'S TAKE
The Blazers nearly blew a double-digit lead in the first meeting between the teams, but were able to hold off the Jazz to capture the first win of the season series. LaMarcus Aldridge is playing some of the best basketball of his career for the Blazers. He had 22 points and 11 rebounds in the first meeting. Lillard scored a team-high 25 points. Matthews, who is tied for the league lead in three pointers, scored 21 in that game. Lopez anchors the middle and provides a rim defending presence. McCollum has scored in double figures in the past four games and Leonard has impressed many over the past month by extending defenses with his shooting and also has been tough on the boards. The Blazers will be without Thomas Robinson, Will Barton and Victor Claver, who were traded to the Nuggets for Afflalo and Gee on Feb. 19. Afflalo and Gee are not expected to play in this game. The Jazz are led by Hayward, who is having the best year of his career. He scored a game-high 27 points in the first meeting between the teams. Burke came off the bench to chip in 18 while dishing out a team-high 6 assists. While he did not start, Gobert led all rebounders with 15. Favors had a respectable 20 points in that contest. Exum has impressed enough to earn a starting spot, but was ineffective in limited minutes in the first meeting. The Jazz will be without Enes Kanter and Steve Novak, who were traded to Oklahoma City for Perkins on Feb. 19. Perkins is not expected to play in this game. The Blazers can win this if they control the glass and limit their turnovers. Matchup to watch: LaMarcus Aldridge vs. Derrick Favors.
OFFICIALS
Tony Brothers, Mark Ayotte, Brent Barnaky.
QUOTEABLE
Blazers guard Wesley Matthews on center Robin Lopez, who made his against the Jazz on Feb. 3: "Not only does he help the starting unit, he just helps the team all together because it sets rotations. Everybody is back to what they're accustomed, where they've been playing for so long."
Jazz coach Quin Snyder on his team's progress this season: "We've gone from losing nine straight to being able to play with the best teams in the league, so we've just got to figure out how to be more consistent."
FEATURED TWEETS
For this game, I wanted to put in a few notable tweets regarding former Blazers forward Jerome Kersey, who passed away on Feb. 18 at the age of 52.
EXTRA
MEME
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Graphic courtesy of David.
