Blazers poised for bounce back

Coach Nate McMillan knew the difference, evidently his team did not. The Portland coach saw his young charges become caught up in the moment and they never responded, in 108-81 hazing by Houston as playoff “freshmen”. Having one of the best home court advantages in the NBA in compiling 34-7 (26-15 ATS) record, the Trailblazers immediately surrendered hard fought edge and have to bounce back in Game Two or prospects for surviving the first round are dim.

Houston’s strategy of clamping down on Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge worked as they were combined 13-35 from the field and only Greg Oden was force on offense with 15 points, as Portland shot 41.7 percent from the floor. The Blazers shot the three-ball like they were basketball Luddites, clanging 10 of 11 from behind the arc, suffering their worst defeat of the season.

Portland is 16-6 ATS in home games revenging a loss vs opponent of 10 points or more and the coach and players are anxious to put this behind them. “There are two seasons - the regular season and the postseason," McMillan said. "We lost our first game of this season. They (the Rockets) have to win four. We'll go back to work (Sunday) and make some adjustments and get ready for Tuesday."

Brandon Roy said he needs more help from his teammates than he got Saturday night.

"I can't wait for Tuesday," Portland's all-star guard said. "At the same time, we're going to have to make some adjustments. You can't just say we're going to play better. They (the Rockets) knew their game plan. I kept telling guys, 'Don't let this break us.'

“It's our first (playoff) experience. We're trying to learn as much as we can, but we do need to play basketball for 48 minutes. We didn't do that tonight. Everybody has to bring it. We can't rely on one or two guys. We have to play better team basketball and play with a little more effort and sense of urgency."

Houston played with the poise of an experienced team, not being affected by raucous crowd to start the game. Coach Rick Adelman, a former Portland coach, deserves accolades for formulating superior game plan.

The Rockets plan was to create more space for point guard Aaron Brooks, especially off screen and rolls, allowing him to use his quickness and he responded with game high 27 points. Adelman also wisely used Luis Scola on offense. In the second half, when Portland would collapse on Yao Ming, Scola was positioned on the other side of the lane for baseline jump shots and he drilled seven of nine, for 19 total points. Scola wisely used his body to defend the quicker Aldridge and the Rockets improved to 5-2 ATS on the receiving end of 5.5 or more points since 2009 began.

Adelman has too many games under his coaching belt to honestly believe his team has gained a tremendous edge. "We've won one," Adelman said. "That's all it is, one game. The next game is going to be totally different. We have to respond better for that game than we did for this game. We're going to take (the Blazers') best shot."

The sciental wise bettor knows of the past travails concerning Houston, like 2-10 ATS record off a win by 15 or more points or 5-14 spread mark after playing as road underdog. This is in part why Betjamaica.com and other sportsbooks have toed the line at 5.5-points on Portland, with total at 184. The Blazers weren’t going to keep playing super basketball forever, coming into the series with six game winning streak and winners of 10 of 11. (Only loss to Houston if you prefer subtle irony)

The Blazers even with the loss are 12-3 ATS as favorites and are 22-9 UNDER in home games revenging a pair of losses where opponent scored 100 or more points. The Rockets have barely launched with 1-8 ATS record off an upset win as an underdog this season and are 12-4 OVER after a double digit triumph.

This 4vs5 match starts at 10 Eastern with Houston 6-1 ATS in last seven meetings.