Wow, this game was a real stinker for the Blazers. It was just one of those nights, as they say. Nothing really went right for our guys and Bulls led the entire game. The final score was 88-113 and it was never even close.
It was Pride Night at Moda Center and the Portland Gay Men's Chorus started things off with a rousing version of the national anthem. Ex-Blazer and fan favorite Robin Lopez got a big cheer from the crowd when his name was announced in the Bulls starting line-up. From there things pretty much went downhill.
The Bulls ran up a fast 8 points and Coach Stotts called the quickest timeout I've ever seen at a Blazers game, just 90 seconds in. Unfortunately the timeout didn't help much and by the end of the first quarter the Blazers found themselves down 21 points, a ridiculous deficit after just 12 minutes of playing time. They were deep in a hole from which they never climbed out.
You know what, we don't really need to dwell on this game too much. It wasn't a good showing, but I for one still think the Blazers have a bright future this season. The fans were looking good too. We are lucky here in Portland because our team colors are black, white, and red, all badass colors. The Bulls, it turns out, claim the same color scheme. I guess they are the east coast version. There was a fairly large contingent of Bulls fans at the game, though it was hard to pick them out because of the aforementioned shared color scheme. Some folks were wearing Miami Heat gear, assumedly in honor of the Bulls newly acquired shooting guard Duane Wade. Come to think of it, the Heat also employ black, white and red colors, though with a greater emphasis on white. Anyway, let's have a look at some of the Blazers/Bulls outfits spotted in the hallways at halftime, shall we?
Look, it's beloved Portland artist Carson Ellis! And she knitted a Rip City hat! She said she made it for her rock star husband, Colin Meloy, but for some reason he wasn't wearing it.
And then there was this nice woman who brought her dog to the game:
Wouldn't it be cool if they had "Dog Night" for one of the Blazers games? Everyone could bring their dog! Maybe when they play the Timberwolves? I'm going to pass this idea on to my friends at the Trailblazer's PR office. Start knitting those black and red dog sweaters folks. It'll be mayhem at the Moda Center!
The Blazers fared no better in the second half, in case you are wondering. They just never found their groove. The faithful Blazers fans kept cheering well into the fourth quarter, trying to rally the team with that good old "Let's Go Blazers!" chant, but it just wasn't happening. The Bulls were tough, and our shots weren't going down.
Coach Stotts waved the white flag with about 4:20 left in the game and emptied the bench. Tim Quarterman saw his first Moda Center minutes and Jake Layman missed two shots. Shabazz Napier looked pretty good out there, hustling and hitting a three.
At the press conference afterwards Coach Stotts looked a little tired. "We've just got to move on," he said. Good advice. Let's do it!