First Quarter:
- You think the Nuggets are keying on Oden at all tonight? He’s got doubles poking at him down low and Nene attacking the rim right off the bat.
- Martell is out for blood tonight.
- OSLer Joe Jackson on Greg Oden’s early rebounding effort: “Oh, man. Oh, man. He’s just…BEASTING it right now.” My sentiments exactly, Joe.
- Craig Sager is getting worse. His look, his delivery, his hair…it’s all gradually becoming nastier.
- Reggie Miller is reporting that “a lot of people in Portland” think that Joel Przybilla should be starting at center. I’m pretty sure that’s just a lie.
- Ty Lawson had a hell of a game last night in his first game as a pro. I’m interested to see him match up against Dre/Rudy.
- Nuggs are on a 10-0 run to end the quarter. 24-17, Denver.
Second Quarter:
- George Karl is gradually turning into a Bond villain. Seriously, would you be surprised to hear him talking with a German accent and threatening the world with stolen Nukes?
- Twin Towers alert. Pretty sure that 52 and 10 on the floor at the same time is one of the seven signs of the Apocolypse.
- Kenyon Martin just went all Jake LaMotta on Pryz. This does not bode well for either Martin or his disgusting neck tattoos, as Pryz becomes roughly 30 times more dangerous after he tastes human blood.
- Martell is giving Melo all he can handle. That’s got to make Blazers fans happy. Also, I’m hoping that the creators of NBA 2K10 are watching, so that maybe they’ll see that Martell is just a TEENSY bit better than a 60.
- Travis is playing like a man. Aggressive defense, hitting the boards, fiery disposition…something has changed upstairs for Travis, I think.
- Three fouls on both Greg and Pryz. Aldridge, Outlaw and Webster, aka the Lollipop Guild, are now manning the frontcourt.
Halftime
- Melo has 20 at the half. Curious substitutions of Brandon Roy in that second quarter by Nate. I wonder if there’s something bothering Roy.
- Joe: “Chuck’s not going to be friendly.” I’m literally shaking right now with fear.
- The Blazers attempted 24 more shots than Denver, and they’re only up one. That should be both encouraging and depressing for Portland. I think the second half hinges on Martell, Pryz and Greg nipping that nasty foul habit in the bud.
- T-Mobile trivia question asks what instrument LaMarcus plays. Chuck wonders aloud, “What’s a recorder?” Maybe Sir Charles needs to return his knighthood to Medieval Times and Billy Madison his way back into fifth grade. Incidentally, the answer was piano.
Third Quarter
- Finally the Blazers are looking to exploit the Roy/Anthony Carter mismatch. Seems like Brandon should be backing Carter down until the Nuggs can stop it.
- Nearly back-to-back dirty calls by the referees against the Blazer bigs. Both Przybilla and Oden have four fouls.
- Scratch that. Three bad calls. Pryz has five.
- Martell’s second block on Carmelo is a real doozy. Melo responds by talking enormous amounts of trash blatantly in front of the referee. The NBA, where making that growly face and pounding your chest happens.
- Big Cat Howard’s getting a lot of run while Przy and Greg are on the bench. Denver is still without an offensive rebound.
- Brandon stops short on Melo like Frank Costanza, then comes off a pick and buries a three. He has 18 points, including 11 in the third quarter. Somewhere, Mike Rice is screaming, “It’s Brandon Roy time!!!”
- Brandon Roy’s three to end the third serves as Exhibit A in favor of Mike Rice being correct in his postulation that it is indeed “Brandon Roy time.” 67-62, Blazers.
Fourth Quarter
- Birdman Andersen is one of the toughest matchups for LMA. Bird is long enough to actually bother LaMarcus’ jumper. Plus, the weight advantage makes going inside difficult if not futile. LMA’s game is built to shred guys like David West, but Andersen is a nightmare.
- 6:21 left in the game, and Denver is in the penalty. Gonna be a long quarter, folks.
- Carmelo is doing the dirty on Portland’s face in the fourth. He’s single-handedly keeping Denver in the game. I guffawed at The Jet when he hinted at Melo winning the MVP this year, but he might not be crazy on this one. Although, Rudy has 16 this quarter compared to 11 for Anthony.
- This is an ugly game. Too many fouls. Too many free throws. Hope we still have the replacement refs’ numbers in the rolodex.
- Greg whiffs on two free throws and Melo sinks two on the other end to give the Nuggs a three-point lead with 1.9 seconds to play. Brandon can’t replicate his buzzer beater against Houston last year, and the Nuggs hold on to win. Somewhere evil, Bill Simmons is smiling broadly and smoking a humongous Sherlock Holmes pipe.