Trail Blazers at Pistons
THE STORY: The Portland Trail Blazers have finally reached the last stop on what has been a less-than-ideal road trip. The Blazers had some of their warts exposed in road losses to San Antonio, Houston and Atlanta on the current six-game trip, with victories coming over struggling clubs like New Orleans and Toronto. Portland will get a chance to head home even when it visits another team bound for the lottery in the Detroit Pistons on Saturday. The Blazers got by with a new transition attack and a high-scoring pace over the first two weeks, breaking in new guards Raymond Felton and Jamal Crawford. When the shots stopped falling, Portland stopped winning. In the last three games, including a 92-89 loss at Atlanta, Portland has put more focus on the defensive end. Any defensive pressure at all usually confounds the Pistons, who rank last in the NBA in scoring average. Detroit dropped its fourth straight on Friday.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, CSNW (Portland), FSD (Detroit)
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (9-6): LaMarcus Aldridge put Portland on his back Friday, recording 33 points and a career-high 23 rebounds in a 94-84 victory at Toronto. The Blazers were at their best in the first half, holding the Raptors to 32 points before the break and coasting to the win. Aldridge, who was recently named as a finalist for the U.S. Olympic team, has been the most consistent scorer for the Portland while the guards and forward Gerald Wallace search for a rhythm.
ABOUT THE PISTONS (3-13): Detroit exploded for 35 points in the third quarter on Friday night. Of course, it totaled 46 points in the other three frames en route to a 98-81 home loss to Memphis. The Pistons are averaging less than 85 points and also rank at the bottom of the league in rebounding. Detroit is so starved for production that it signed guard William Russell Jr. from the Development League and gave him 20 minutes of playing time on Friday, getting three points on 1-of-2 shooting.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. The 84.3 points the Blazers have allowed in the last three games marks their best defensive stretch of the season.
2. The Pistons are without G Rodney Stuckey (groin), G Will Bynum (foot) and F Charlie Villanueva (ankle).
3. Portland has taken six straight in the series.