Trail Blazers vs Warriors Wednesday, 04/17/13 AT 07:00PM

Portland Rolls Into Matchup With Warriors

04/04/11

  1. Written by: Grant Lucas  / avg. rating: 5.0

    Things are clicking in the Rose Garden lately, where the Portland Trail Blazers (45-32) have won eight straight games. They'll look to extend that streak on Tuesday night, when the Golden State Warriors (33-44) come into Rip City to challenge the Trail Blazers. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 PM.

    Projected to start for Portland are Gerald Wallace, LaMarcus Aldridge, Marcus Camby, Wesley Matthews and Andre Miller.

    The Trail Blazers have momentum on their side after defeating the Dallas Mavericks with relative ease on Sunday. In that 104-96 victory, Portland shot 53.4 percent from the field, pounded its way to a 50-38 margin in points in the paint, and put together a 9-0 run to take a 20-point lead in the third quarter.

    Wallace and Aldridge led the way with 19 and 18 points, respectively, with each adding eight rebounds. Matthews posted 16 points, Rudy Fernandez put up 15 points off the bench, and Miller finished with 10 points.

    Now the Trail Blazers face a Warrior squad that has won just three games in the last 11 contests. Golden State, however, is coming off a 99-92 win against the Mavericks on Saturday, during which the Warriors outscored Dallas 50-38 and saw Monta Ellis pour in 18 third-quarter points en route to his game-high 32.

    David Lee helped out the offense with 16 points and eight boards with Dorell Wright adding 13 points and six rebounds of his own. Stephen Curry had 12 points and eight assists and Al Thornton came off the bench with 12 points and nine boards.

    The Trail Blazers and Warriors have met twice this season, with each team coming up victorious on their home floors. After Portland escaped with a 96-95 win in the Rose Garden on Dec. 18, Golden State returned the favor a week later, downing the Trail Blazers 109-102 on Christmas Day.

    Ellis and Lee did most of the damage for the Warriors, with Ellis registering 39 points and seven assists and Lee dropping 21 points, seven boards and five assists. Wright chipped in with 16 points and eight rebounds.

    For the Trail Blazers, Matthews tallied a team-high 25 points, Batum put up 18 points and 10 boards, and Aldridge notched 15 points and eight rebounds. Miller recorded 12 points and a season-high 15 assists.

    Portland held a 97-91 advantage with four minutes left in the game, but the Warriors stormed back with 11 straight points to grab the lead and extended the streak to 18-5 to close out the game and take the win.

    Despite the loss, the Trail Blazers owned the boards, collecting a season-high 53 rebounds while holding Golden State to 32. The Trail Blazers also used 24 offensive boards to tally 27 second-chance points. Portland held its own in the paint as well, outscoring its counterpart 62-42, but the Warriors tallied 28 fastbreak points - compared to Portland's 14 - and went 10-for-22 from three-point range to take the win.

    Golden State has seen its star players excel in the season series with Portland, as Ellis and Lee have averaged 32.5 and 17 points per game, respectively. Ellis has added six assists per game, while Lee has put up nine rebounds.

    Aldridge is averaging 16 points and 10 boards and Matthews has helped out with 19 points per game, but the Trail Blazers have been outscored by a little more than nine points in the fourth quarter in each meeting with the Warriors.

    Portland holds a 93-74 advantage on the glass, including a 35-22 edge on the offensive boards, but the Warriors have taken 15 of the last 22 matchups.

    In 15 of the last 16 contests between these clubs, the winning team has exceeded the century mark, with the Trail Blazers' 96-95 win on Dec. 18 being the exception.

    Out for Portland are Greg Oden and Elliot Williams, who are sidelined with knee injuries.

    Comcast SportsNet will air Tuesday's game with Mike Barrett and Mike Rice on the call. Brian Wheeler and Antonio Harvey will have the play-by-play on 95.5 FM The Game.

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