Blazers turn back Grizzlies

Basketball Betting Lines

02/19/2009 - Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Roy had a game-high 24 points and nine assists, as the Portland Trail Blazers hung on to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies, 94-90, at the Rose Garden.

LaMarcus Aldridge added 15 points and six rebounds for the Blazers, who started a three-game homestand. Nicolas Batum ended with 11 points. Joel Przybilla pulled down a game-high 15 boards.

The Blazers were without emerging center Greg Oden, who sat out because of a bone chip in his left knee. He suffered the injury against the Warriors on February 12. Oden was unable to play in the All-Star weekend's rookie challenge because of the injury and is currently listed as day-to-day.

"This was a tough game. It's not surprising though. Often, when there are a number of days off it's sometimes as disadvantage," said Portland coach Nate McMillan. "We were fortunate to play really well in parts of the first half. But in the second half, a second wind never came for us."

Memphis was paced by Rudy Gay, who ended with 20 points and five rebounds. O.J. Mayo chipped in 19 points for the Grizzlies, who finished a three-game road trip with a 0-3 record. Mike Conley finished with 15 points and 10 helpers.

Rudy Fernandez drilled a three-pointer with 8:15 remaining to extend Portland's lead to 82-76. But Memphis responded with a 10-2 run to take its first lead since early in the first quarter. Gay made 1-of-2 from the stripe to cap the flurry with 4:50 to go.

With the score knotted at 86, Darius Miles was charged with a technical foul. Roy converted on the technical free throw to put the home team up by one. Travis Outlaw connected on a three-pointer from the corner to make it a 90-86 game with 2:31 left.

Trailing 92-88, Memphis brought the ball down the court with 15.2 seconds to go. Mayo made a one-handed driving layup with 5.4 ticks left to cut the gap to 92-90, but it was too late. Roy made 2-of-2 from the stripe on the ensuing Blazers possession to put the home team ahead by four with 3.9 seconds remaining. On the final possession, Mayo missed a jumper as time ran out.

"We turned the ball over -- we didn't pass it to our team and we didn't stop at the free throw line and we ran over people and made charges and just didn't execute," said Memphis coach Lionel Hollins. "They just got out and ran. It looked like a track meet in the first quarter. I told our guys that it was a lesson in how hard you have to play and how the good teams play. That's the intensity that you have to bring every night, every day. I was proud of the fact that they caught on to the lesson because we started playing harder and we caught up to them and it was a game."

The majority of the first quarter was a back-and-forth battle. The Blazers opened a six-point lead, the largest of the frame, on a Batum slam with 3:38 left. Portland held onto a slim margin for the rest of the stanza and took a 30-27 advantage into the second quarter.

After Hakim Warrick made a layup to start the second period, the Blazers scored 10 unanswered points to extend their lead to 40-29. Sergio Rodriguez drilled a shot from beyond the arc to culminate the spurt with 8:12 remaining.

Aldridge made a pair of foul shots to give Portland a 54-40 cushion with just over three minutes until half. But Memphis responded with a 13-3 spurt to close out the half. Mayo hit a three-pointer with a few ticks remaining to culminate the run and cut the gap to 57-53 heading into the locker room.

Mayo and Roy tallied 13 points apiece at the break to lead their respective teams.

Down 60-55 early in the third period, The Grizzlies scored five straight points to tie the game. After Marc Gasol made a short jumper, Conley capped off the spurt with a shot from beyond the arc.

The Blazers didn't let this small run bother them, as they responded with six unanswered points. Batum culminated the spurt with a jumper with about 8 1/2 minutes left. The Blazers maintained a small advantage for the rest of the frame and took a 75-72 edge into the final quarter.

This game also marked the return of Darius Miles to the Rose Garden. Miles was waived by the Blazers at the end of last season, and then a doctor determined that Miles' knee injury was career-ending. However, Miles came back and played for Boston in the preseason before joining Memphis, and after playing a total of 10 games, the Blazers were hit with a salary-cap hit of $18 million. He finished with six points and five rebounds in Wednesday's game.

Earlier in the day, Portland was involved in a three-team trade with Sacramento and Chicago. The Kings traded center Brad Miller and swingman John Salmons to the Bulls in exchange for forwards Andres Nocioni, Cedric Simmons and Michael Ruffin, and center Drew Gooden.

The Kings then turned around and sent Ruffin to Portland in exchange for forward Ike Diogu. The Blazers also gained a $3 million trade exception, which they can use for one calendar year.

Game Notes

The Blazers shot 15-of-18 from the foul line, while the Grizzlies went 12-of-20 from the stripe...This was the first meeting between the teams this season...Portland won all three meetings last season...Memphis dropped to 3-21 on the road this season...Blazers' starting point guard Steve Blake, who had missed 13 of the last 14 games with a separated right shoulder, returned to the lineup. He finished with seven points.

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

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