By ANDREW HINKELMAN, Associated Press Writer
February 1, 2003
PORTLAND, Ore (AP) -- Rasheed Wallace made a statement on the court in his return from a seven-game suspension, even if he had little to say off the court.
Wallace had 28 points and seven rebounds, and Dale Davis had a strong game inside with 17 points and 13 rebounds as the Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Chicago Bulls 107-94 Friday night.
Wallace was suspended for threatening referee Tim Donaghy after a game Jan. 15. Portland went 5-2 in Wallace's absence. Wallace did speak with the media after the game, but only offered variations on ``It was a good game, both teams played hard,'' as an answer to questions.
``I knew he would come right out,'' Blazers coach Maurice Cheeks said. ``I didn't know he would make the shots that he made, but I knew he would come out right away.''
Derek Anderson had 14 points and six assists for Portland, which has won six of seven. Arvydas Sabonis added 13 points and five rebounds off the bench.
``I thought he would have a great game,'' Blazers reserve guard Jeff McInnis said. ``He was making his shots like he was never gone. We're going to make sure he's aggressive because he has the freshest legs of all of us.''
Said guard Bonzi Wells: ``I knew he was going to come out aggressive. We told him 'You came off a 38-point game, you better have a 30-point game.'''
Jalen Rose had 16 points to lead the Bulls, who lost their second in a row. Marcus Fizer had 17 points before leaving the game late with a sprained right knee.
``I doubt if I'll play tomorrow,'' a despondent Fizer said. ``I went to plant with the right to go left; but when I planted, it jolted out to the right and I felt it pop.''
Portland took control of the game early in the third quarter with runs of 10-2 and 11-2 to put them up by as many as 16. But the Bulls rallied a bit toward the end of the quarter, trailing by 11 heading into the final period.
``We just weren't able to establish anything down low offensively, and that made us more of a perimeter team than I like,'' Chicago coach Bill Cartwright said. ``They really hurt us on the boards.''
The Blazers gradually pulled away from Chicago in the opening minutes of the fourth, thanks to the play of reserves Damon Stoudamire and Sabonis. Portland led by as many as 18 before garbage time set in.
``It was just tough to overcome that emotion with Rasheed coming back,'' Rose said. ``He was knocking down shots all over the floor. In the third quarter it was just too much Rasheed Wallace.''
Stoudamire finished with four points, six assists and five rebounds in 21 minutes.
Neither team played particularly well nor particularly poorly in an unremarkable first half, other than the return of Wallace.
Portland dominated the boards in the first half, 27-11, and for the game, 48-34,
Chicago activated rookie guard Jay Williams from the injured list prior to the game.
Williams, the No. 2 overall pick from Duke, went on the injured list Jan. 20 with a left ankle sprain. He had seven points and four assists in 22 minutes.
``I felt a little out of sync, but after five games out you can expect that,'' Williams said. ``I'll just have to assert myself a little more as timegoes on.'' Notes The Bulls placed rookie forward Lonny Baxter on the injured list with left knee tendinitis to make room for Williams. ... Blazers reserve Antonio Daniels missed his second straight game with a right ankle sprain. Daniels suffered the injury Jan. 24 at New Orleans and aggravated it during Tuesday's game versus Denver, leaving the game after playing just 1 minute. ... Due to the length of the Wallace suspension, the league allowed Portland to activate veteran center Chris Dudley from the injured list. Dudley returned there Fridaywith Wallace's activation from the suspended list.
Updated on Saturday, Feb 1, 2003 1:13 am, EST
Email to a Friend | View Popular
|
