BLAZERS GRADED: Houston 110, Portland 95

Monday, December 22, 2014

Andrew R Tonry, GoLocalPDX Contributor

As LaMarcus Aldridge, suffering an upper-respiratory illness, would not be in uniform, this one was almost over before it began.

But Houston's success went from presumed to spectacular on the back of James Harden's scintillating performance.

Particularly in the first half, Harden was virtuosic. Regardless of the defender--and the Blazers threw the kitchen sink at him--Harden cooked and knifed to the rim, plowing through contact and scoring, again and again. His final play of the first-half was a microcosm:

Harden shaked, baked, crossed over then exploded towards the hoop, scoring a twisting layup that was equal parts power and finesse while beating the half-time buzzer for his 30th and 31st points.

At the break, Houston was up 73-53. It was, by significant measure, the Rockets' most prolific-scoring half of the year. Defensively, it was the Blazers' worst.

Which is not to say that there was a whole lot else Portland could have done. Harden was simply majestic, and the Blazers, playing without Aldridge, their leading scorer and rebounder--not to mention matchup nightmare for Houston--were discombobulated.

Had Aldridge been in uniform it might not even had made a difference--not with Harden on such a tear.

He finished with 44 points, which tied a season-high and was just two shy of a career-best. Had he played more than just two-and-a-half minutes in the fourth quarter, he'd likely have eclipsed that as well.

Indeed, Monday, Harden was simply magnificent.

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NICOLAS BATUM: F
On a night when they really needed his offense, Batum laid another egg. Forget that he couldn't slow Harden--no one in the league could have this day--Batum was a total non-factor.

MEYERS LEONARD: B+
Starting in place of Aldridge, Leonard was... actually, pretty good. Monday's was his best performance of the season, if not his career. Leonard made 3-of-7 attempts from deep and 5-of-11 overall. He finished with 13 points, four boards and one sweet alley-oop. And of course, in typical Meyers fashion, he wasn't even sure he made it:

JOEL FREELAND: C-
It's a lot to ask of Freeland to start opposite of Dwight Howard. He finished with four points and five rebounds.

WESLEY MATTHEWS: B-
Matthews too couldn't slow Harden, but at least he managed to score a few points of his own. He finished with 14, but was hampered by foul-trouble, and surely frustrated.

DAMIAN LILLARD: C-
Tough night for Lillard, who missed all five attempts from downtown. At the same time, it's not surprising that Lillard--along with the rest of the Blazers' offense--was a little bit out of sorts playing without Aldridge for the first time this season. Lillard finished with 18 points, three assists and three boards.