Outlaw's 33 leads Blazers past Bulls
Chicago Bulls guard Ben Gordon (7) has his shot blocked by Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge (12), as Portland center Greg Oden (52) helps on defense during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Chicago, Monday, Jan. 12, 2009. By ANDREW SELIGMAN AP Sports WriterCHICAGO (AP) — Travis Outlaw had a season-high 33 points, Greg Oden scored 17 while grabbing 13 rebounds, and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Chicago Bulls 109-95 on Monday night. It was a good start to the week for the Trail Blazers, who were coming off a rather chaotic one. They found themselves in an old, familiar spot — the center of controversy — for sending an e-mail to teams threatening legal action if they signed former forward Darius Miles, but the current players are doing a good job ignoring any distractions. While Brandon Roy (11 points) and LaMarcus Aldridge (eight points) were rather quiet, Outlaw and Oden were locked in as the Blazers earned their third straight win. Outlaw finished three points off his career high and tied one by hitting 4-of-5 3-pointers, making one at the end of the first half to cap an 11-2 run that gave Portland a 49-45 lead. Oden dominated in the first half, with 13 points and nine rebounds. Steve Blake finished with 16 points and 10 assists, and the Blazers prevailed even though Roy hit just 3-of-13 shots in his second game back after missing four with a sore hamstring. For the Bulls, it was another long night. They had all their top players available for the first time this season, with Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng back from injuries, but the result was familiar — their fifth loss in seven games. They played well early on after losing in overtime to Oklahoma City on Saturday, but were overmatched in the end. At least this game was closer than their first meeting with the Blazers. A 42-point winner over Chicago at the Rose Garden in November, Portland led 56-46 after Oden dunked less than two minutes into the third quarter and remained in control the rest of the way. The Bulls made a push in the fourth, with Derrick Rose's free throw making it 83-78, but Rudy Fernandez answered with a 3-pointer to start an 11-0 run. Drew Gooden led Chicago with 22 points and nine rebounds, and Ben Gordon scored 17 points. Deng added 14 points in 22 minutes off the bench but was 3-for-10 from the field after missing eight games with a sprained left ankle. Hinrich received a loud ovation when he replaced Gordon midway through the first quarter and wasted little time finding Thabo Sefolosha for an alley-oop layup on a break, but it was a quiet night otherwise. Sidelined for 31 games with a torn ligament in his right thumb, he finished with four points in 20 minutes in his first appearance since Nov. 7. Notes: Outlaw's previous season high was 20 points at Orlando on Nov. 10. His career high is 36 against Golden State on April 18, 2007. ... Sefolosha started and had eight points after missing a game because of the flu. |
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