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NBA: Blake ties mark for assists in Portland win
By The Associated Press
Monday, February 23, 2009 | No comments posted.
PORTLAND — An injury-ravaged opponent and a team eager to run proved to be a record-setting combination for Portland’s Steve Blake.
Blake tied an NBA record for assists in one quarter when he handed out 14 during the first period in the Blazers’ 116-87 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. San Antonio’s John Lucas set the record of 14 assists during the second quarter against Denver on April 15, 1984.
“I took a peek and saw I was getting up there, so I was happy guys kept making shots for me,” Blake said. “When it comes to assists, your teammates have to make shots, and they did that for me.”
With Portland (35-20) running against a Clippers’ team down by six players due to injury, Blake took advantage of the fast-paced start the Blazers created. During one stretch of the first quarter, Blake had assists on nine consecutive baskets, including five passes that led to dunks by LaMarcus Aldridge, Nicolas Batum and Joel Przybilla.
“When I run the floor like that and Blake passes you the ball like that, what can you do?” said Aldridge, who had a double-double with 28 points and 10 rebounds.
Los Angeles couldn’t do much. The Clippers (13-43) were without starting forwards Zach Randolph and Al Thornton. Randolph served the second game of a two-game suspension for punching Phoenix’ Louis Amundson on Feb. 17. Thornton, out with a sore right foot, missed his first game of the season.
The Clippers were also missing forward Marcus Camby (ear infection), center Chris Kaman (left foot), forward Brian Skinner (right foot) and guard Mike Taylor (right thumb). Beyond that, starting guard Baron Davis played with a painful toe injury.
“Once they started running, it was hard for us to get back,” Davis said. “We just got dominated out there.”
Blake, who scored six points and didn’t make his first basket until midway through the third quarter, had plenty to do with Portland’s quick offensive start. The Blazers hit 18 of 26 shots during the first quarter on the way to a 38-16 lead.
Blake said the first quarter was “the best quarter I’ve ever played.” He missed 13 of 14 games before the All-Star break with a shoulder injury. He has started each of Portland’s three games since the break.
“He’s been good ever since he’s been back,” Portland coach Nate McMillan said. “Frankly, I was surprised that Steve had 14 assists in the first quarter, but I knew we had good ball movement and good rhythm and were kind of in a zone.”
Blake’s sensational quarter overshadowed performances by Aldridge and Brandon Roy. Aldridge hit 13 of 20 shots and scored 18 of his 28 points during the first quarter. Roy was near a triple-double, with 20 points, eight rebounds and nine assists.
“He made everybody’s job easy,” Aldridge said of Blake. “All we had to do was finish.”
With the win, Portland pulled to within 11⁄2 games of first-place Denver in the Northwest Division. The Blazers, who won their eighth consecutive home game, are 3-0 since the All-Star break. Portland leaves town for a three-game road trip beginning Tuesday in Houston.
Guard Eric Gordon led Los Angeles with 21 points, while DeAndre Jordan had 15 points and 12 rebounds.
Lakers 111, Timberwolves 108
MINNEAPOLIS — Kobe Bryant scored 28 points to move past Elgin Baylor into 20th place on the NBA’s career scoring list and the Los Angeles Lakers outlasted the Minnesota Timberwolves for a 111-108 victory Sunday night.
Lamar Odom had 25 points and 14 rebounds, and Pau Gasol added 25 points for the team with the league’s best record.
Ryan Gomes had 20 points and seven rebounds and Craig Smith scored 19 on 9-for-10 shooting for the Timberwolves, who committed 20 turnovers and lost their sixth straight home game.
Celtics 128, Suns 108
PHOENIX — Rajon Rondo scored a career-high 32 points to go with 10 assists on his 23rd birthday and the Boston Celtics didn’t need Kevin Garnett to beat the Phoenix Suns.
Ray Allen scored 31 and Paul Pierce 26 in Boston’s first game since Garnett went down with a strained muscle in his right knee that is expected to sideline him for at least two weeks.
The Suns have bigger problems, losing leading scorer and rebounder Amare Stoudemire following eye surgery Friday. He won’t be able to resume physical activity for about eight weeks.
Jason Richardson scored 21 for the Suns in their first loss in four games under new coach Alvin Gentry.
Raptors 111, Knicks 100
TORONTO — Andrea Bargnani had 28 points and 10 rebounds to help the Raptors beat New York two days after absorbing a 30-point loss against the Knicks.
Each of the Toronto starters reached double figures and four of the five had double-doubles. Anthony Parker scored 24 points, Shawn Marion had 16 points and 15 rebounds and Chris Bosh added 11 points and 12 boards. Jose Calderon had 13 points and 11 assists.
Pacers 98, Bulls 91
INDIANAPOLIS — Troy Murphy had a season-high 27 points and the Pacers survived a second-half stretch of 11 minutes without a field goal to beat Chicago.
Ben Gordon had 28 points to lead Chicago.
Magic 122, Heat 99
ORLANDO, Fla. — Dwight Howard had 32 points and 17 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic withstood a career-high 50 points by Dwyane Wade to rout the Miami Heat.
Wade was potent from inside and out, scoring with high-flying dunks and soaring jumpers that had even some Magic fans chanting “M-V-P!” Miami’s do-it-all guard had previously scored 48 twice in his career, and had 43 points two times earlier this season.
Bucks 120, Nuggets 117
MILWAUKEE — Charlie Villanueva scored nine of his season-high 36 points in the fourth quarter to help the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Denver Nuggets.
Carmelo Anthony scored 33 points and Chauncey Billups added 21 for the Nuggets who ended a season-high eight-game road trip with a 5-3 mark. Denver plays its first game at home since February 3 today against the Boston Celtics.
Rockets 99, Bobcats 78
HOUSTON — Ron Artest scored 26 points, Yao Ming added 19 points and seven rebounds and the Houston Rockets continued to win without Tracy McGrady.
McGrady announced Wednesday that he’ll have season-ending surgery, but Houston is 15-6 without him this season.
Cavaliers 99, Pistons 78
CLEVELAND — Delonte West scored 25 points in his first game since mid-January and LeBron James added 20, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers over the Detroit Pistons.
West, sidelined since Jan. 15 with a fractured right wrist, was 8-of-11 from the field and made all five of his 3-point attempts. He scored 13 points in the first quarter when the Cavaliers put the game away against the sluggish Pistons, who have lost six straight for the first time since February 2004, and fell to 27-27.
Blake tied an NBA record for assists in one quarter when he handed out 14 during the first period in the Blazers’ 116-87 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. San Antonio’s John Lucas set the record of 14 assists during the second quarter against Denver on April 15, 1984.
“I took a peek and saw I was getting up there, so I was happy guys kept making shots for me,” Blake said. “When it comes to assists, your teammates have to make shots, and they did that for me.”
With Portland (35-20) running against a Clippers’ team down by six players due to injury, Blake took advantage of the fast-paced start the Blazers created. During one stretch of the first quarter, Blake had assists on nine consecutive baskets, including five passes that led to dunks by LaMarcus Aldridge, Nicolas Batum and Joel Przybilla.
“When I run the floor like that and Blake passes you the ball like that, what can you do?” said Aldridge, who had a double-double with 28 points and 10 rebounds.
Los Angeles couldn’t do much. The Clippers (13-43) were without starting forwards Zach Randolph and Al Thornton. Randolph served the second game of a two-game suspension for punching Phoenix’ Louis Amundson on Feb. 17. Thornton, out with a sore right foot, missed his first game of the season.
The Clippers were also missing forward Marcus Camby (ear infection), center Chris Kaman (left foot), forward Brian Skinner (right foot) and guard Mike Taylor (right thumb). Beyond that, starting guard Baron Davis played with a painful toe injury.
“Once they started running, it was hard for us to get back,” Davis said. “We just got dominated out there.”
Blake, who scored six points and didn’t make his first basket until midway through the third quarter, had plenty to do with Portland’s quick offensive start. The Blazers hit 18 of 26 shots during the first quarter on the way to a 38-16 lead.
Blake said the first quarter was “the best quarter I’ve ever played.” He missed 13 of 14 games before the All-Star break with a shoulder injury. He has started each of Portland’s three games since the break.
“He’s been good ever since he’s been back,” Portland coach Nate McMillan said. “Frankly, I was surprised that Steve had 14 assists in the first quarter, but I knew we had good ball movement and good rhythm and were kind of in a zone.”
Blake’s sensational quarter overshadowed performances by Aldridge and Brandon Roy. Aldridge hit 13 of 20 shots and scored 18 of his 28 points during the first quarter. Roy was near a triple-double, with 20 points, eight rebounds and nine assists.
“He made everybody’s job easy,” Aldridge said of Blake. “All we had to do was finish.”
With the win, Portland pulled to within 11⁄2 games of first-place Denver in the Northwest Division. The Blazers, who won their eighth consecutive home game, are 3-0 since the All-Star break. Portland leaves town for a three-game road trip beginning Tuesday in Houston.
Guard Eric Gordon led Los Angeles with 21 points, while DeAndre Jordan had 15 points and 12 rebounds.
Lakers 111, Timberwolves 108
MINNEAPOLIS — Kobe Bryant scored 28 points to move past Elgin Baylor into 20th place on the NBA’s career scoring list and the Los Angeles Lakers outlasted the Minnesota Timberwolves for a 111-108 victory Sunday night.
Lamar Odom had 25 points and 14 rebounds, and Pau Gasol added 25 points for the team with the league’s best record.
Ryan Gomes had 20 points and seven rebounds and Craig Smith scored 19 on 9-for-10 shooting for the Timberwolves, who committed 20 turnovers and lost their sixth straight home game.
Celtics 128, Suns 108
PHOENIX — Rajon Rondo scored a career-high 32 points to go with 10 assists on his 23rd birthday and the Boston Celtics didn’t need Kevin Garnett to beat the Phoenix Suns.
Ray Allen scored 31 and Paul Pierce 26 in Boston’s first game since Garnett went down with a strained muscle in his right knee that is expected to sideline him for at least two weeks.
The Suns have bigger problems, losing leading scorer and rebounder Amare Stoudemire following eye surgery Friday. He won’t be able to resume physical activity for about eight weeks.
Jason Richardson scored 21 for the Suns in their first loss in four games under new coach Alvin Gentry.
Raptors 111, Knicks 100
TORONTO — Andrea Bargnani had 28 points and 10 rebounds to help the Raptors beat New York two days after absorbing a 30-point loss against the Knicks.
Each of the Toronto starters reached double figures and four of the five had double-doubles. Anthony Parker scored 24 points, Shawn Marion had 16 points and 15 rebounds and Chris Bosh added 11 points and 12 boards. Jose Calderon had 13 points and 11 assists.
Pacers 98, Bulls 91
INDIANAPOLIS — Troy Murphy had a season-high 27 points and the Pacers survived a second-half stretch of 11 minutes without a field goal to beat Chicago.
Ben Gordon had 28 points to lead Chicago.
Magic 122, Heat 99
ORLANDO, Fla. — Dwight Howard had 32 points and 17 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic withstood a career-high 50 points by Dwyane Wade to rout the Miami Heat.
Wade was potent from inside and out, scoring with high-flying dunks and soaring jumpers that had even some Magic fans chanting “M-V-P!” Miami’s do-it-all guard had previously scored 48 twice in his career, and had 43 points two times earlier this season.
Bucks 120, Nuggets 117
MILWAUKEE — Charlie Villanueva scored nine of his season-high 36 points in the fourth quarter to help the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Denver Nuggets.
Carmelo Anthony scored 33 points and Chauncey Billups added 21 for the Nuggets who ended a season-high eight-game road trip with a 5-3 mark. Denver plays its first game at home since February 3 today against the Boston Celtics.
Rockets 99, Bobcats 78
HOUSTON — Ron Artest scored 26 points, Yao Ming added 19 points and seven rebounds and the Houston Rockets continued to win without Tracy McGrady.
McGrady announced Wednesday that he’ll have season-ending surgery, but Houston is 15-6 without him this season.
Cavaliers 99, Pistons 78
CLEVELAND — Delonte West scored 25 points in his first game since mid-January and LeBron James added 20, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers over the Detroit Pistons.
West, sidelined since Jan. 15 with a fractured right wrist, was 8-of-11 from the field and made all five of his 3-point attempts. He scored 13 points in the first quarter when the Cavaliers put the game away against the sluggish Pistons, who have lost six straight for the first time since February 2004, and fell to 27-27.
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