Legends66NBA7
03-15-2015, 05:08 PM
Game Preview: http://mi.nba.com/preview/#!/0021400987
The*Portland Trail Blazers*are coming off a pair of home wins withoutWesley Matthews, but the real test could arrive in this upcoming week.
The Blazers dropped a road game to an inferior opponent last weekend at the beginning of Matthews' absence and face some tough competition in a five-game trip that starts Sunday night against the Atlantic Division-leadingToronto Raptors.
Portland (43-20) lost its third-leading scorer (15.9 points per game) and most prolific 3-point shooter for the season to a ruptured left Achilles tendon March 5. The Blazers overcame Mathews' absence to top Houston 105-100 on Wednesday and easily handled Detroit 118-99 on Friday.
Damian Lillard*had 28 points on 9-of-12 shooting as Portland connected at a season-high 57.5 percent, including 11 for 21 from 3-point range.
"It was real important. This is one of those games where you start looking ahead to a trip and you're facing a team that had been struggling a little bit," said*Arron Afflalo, who has been starting in Matthews' place. "You lose these sometimes. I thought for the most part we were locked in."
The Blazers didn't fare as well on the road in their first game after losing Mathews, losing 121-113 at Western Conference-worst Minnesota on March 7.
This trip begins with games on back-to-back nights against two of the East's top five teams -- Toronto and Washington -- and ends against Southeast Division-leading Memphis. Portland heads into Sunday in third place in the West and one game ahead of Houston.
"It's huge because of how close the Western Conference is," Lillard said. "We've got to go out there and handle our business."
Like the Blazers, Toronto (39-26) holds a sizable lead in its division but has given a bit of that away by losing nine of 11. The Raptors are hoping to break free from that slump after a 102-92 win over Miami on Friday.
Kyle Lowry*had seven steals as Toronto held an opponent under 100 points for the first time in eight games. That began a stretch in which the Raptors play seven of 10 at home to close March.
"We've just got to keep moving on, look at the positives we did (Friday) and carry them over to the next game," guard*DeMar DeRozan*said.
The Raptors have lost 11 of 12 to the Blazers but took them to overtime in a 102-97 road defeat Dec. 30. DeRozan, averaging 29.7 points in his last three matchups with Portland, missed that game because of a groin injury.
LaMarcus Aldridge*has keyed the Blazers' dominance in this series with averages of 25.9 points and 12.9 rebounds in the last nine meetings. He had double-doubles in all of them, easily his longest active streak against any opponent.
While Portland is 19-6 against East teams, Toronto has lost 11 of its last 14 versus the West.
The Raptors should get center*Jonas Valanciunas*back in the lineup after he missed one game following the birth of his child. He's averaged 17.0 points on 62.2 percent shooting in these teams' last three matchups.
The*Portland Trail Blazers*are coming off a pair of home wins withoutWesley Matthews, but the real test could arrive in this upcoming week.
The Blazers dropped a road game to an inferior opponent last weekend at the beginning of Matthews' absence and face some tough competition in a five-game trip that starts Sunday night against the Atlantic Division-leadingToronto Raptors.
Portland (43-20) lost its third-leading scorer (15.9 points per game) and most prolific 3-point shooter for the season to a ruptured left Achilles tendon March 5. The Blazers overcame Mathews' absence to top Houston 105-100 on Wednesday and easily handled Detroit 118-99 on Friday.
Damian Lillard*had 28 points on 9-of-12 shooting as Portland connected at a season-high 57.5 percent, including 11 for 21 from 3-point range.
"It was real important. This is one of those games where you start looking ahead to a trip and you're facing a team that had been struggling a little bit," said*Arron Afflalo, who has been starting in Matthews' place. "You lose these sometimes. I thought for the most part we were locked in."
The Blazers didn't fare as well on the road in their first game after losing Mathews, losing 121-113 at Western Conference-worst Minnesota on March 7.
This trip begins with games on back-to-back nights against two of the East's top five teams -- Toronto and Washington -- and ends against Southeast Division-leading Memphis. Portland heads into Sunday in third place in the West and one game ahead of Houston.
"It's huge because of how close the Western Conference is," Lillard said. "We've got to go out there and handle our business."
Like the Blazers, Toronto (39-26) holds a sizable lead in its division but has given a bit of that away by losing nine of 11. The Raptors are hoping to break free from that slump after a 102-92 win over Miami on Friday.
Kyle Lowry*had seven steals as Toronto held an opponent under 100 points for the first time in eight games. That began a stretch in which the Raptors play seven of 10 at home to close March.
"We've just got to keep moving on, look at the positives we did (Friday) and carry them over to the next game," guard*DeMar DeRozan*said.
The Raptors have lost 11 of 12 to the Blazers but took them to overtime in a 102-97 road defeat Dec. 30. DeRozan, averaging 29.7 points in his last three matchups with Portland, missed that game because of a groin injury.
LaMarcus Aldridge*has keyed the Blazers' dominance in this series with averages of 25.9 points and 12.9 rebounds in the last nine meetings. He had double-doubles in all of them, easily his longest active streak against any opponent.
While Portland is 19-6 against East teams, Toronto has lost 11 of its last 14 versus the West.
The Raptors should get center*Jonas Valanciunas*back in the lineup after he missed one game following the birth of his child. He's averaged 17.0 points on 62.2 percent shooting in these teams' last three matchups.