Trail Blazers vs Nuggets Thursday, 12/20/12 AT 07:00PM

Postgame Notes And Quotes: Season Highs In Rebounds And Assists

12/20/12

Written by: sarahhecht

Thursday, Dec. 20, 2012 Trail Blazers 101, Nuggets 93

HEAD COACH TERRY STOTTS
On Denver breaking Portland’s recent record for most 3-point attempts without a make:
“I know and I was actually proud of that record because we won the game. To 0 for 20 and to win the game, I was hoping to keep that for a while.”
“They had a lot of good looks. I thought we contested some of them, but they had a lot of threes that they could have or should have made.”

On what Matthews back in lineup means
“He’s a gutsy player. He provides energy and passion at the defensive end. Obviously when he makes his shots, that’s another dimension. And he makes us deeper, there’s not as much pressure on the guys coming off the bench.”

On offensive rhythm:
“I felt like offensively, for the most part, we played in a good rhythm. The shots that we got – we shot 36 threes and I thought most of them were pretty good. I’ve said this a lot already this season – we don’t have a magic formula of a box score for wins. Points in the paint, it helps when we make threes, but we beat Toronto without making a three. We don’t have a statistical formula for winning, but when we play together and can do what’s necessary, we play pretty well.”
“Even though we shot poorly, we got a lot of shots. I thought JJ had three or four dunk opportunities in the first half, which was good offense. Like I said, 36 threes and I thought most of them were in rhythm. This was a 100-possession game. When you look at the shot attempts – 98 and 92, it was a high possession game. I thought there was a lot of energy on the court. We didn’t shoot the ball well, but I didn’t think offensively we were as bad as our shooting percentage.”

On four game win streak:
“We can enjoy it until Saturday. We had a 6 game home stand and we have one more game on the home stand. I’m pleased that after the Sacramento game, we were able to bounce back and get some wins and particularly, we’ve won a lot of games with some starters being out, whether it’s LA or Wes or Nic. We’ve had different people play key roles.”
“It feels good. It always feels good after a win. It’s good to be having some momentum. Especially with the schedule the way it is, we need to have momentum now. Home wins aren’t a given, but you want to make sure you hold your own at home.”

JJ HICKSON
On Denver breaking Portland’s recent record for most 3-point attempts without a make:
“Better them than us. We had a similar game, but we got the win”

On double-double streak:
“Just playing hard and trying to stay consistent. Like I’ve been saying all year, that’s something that I’ve been working on throughout my whole career and it’s finally paying off.”

On four game win streak:
“It feels great. We kind of got the monkey off our back so to speak. It feels great to win at home and give these fans something to cheer about.”
“It’s good to beat a team that gets up and down like that. I felt like in the third quarter, we kind of had a breakdown at getting back on defense. But overall, a good job of getting back and making them play in the half court.”

Did you go in with mindset to do more with Aldridge out?
“Not just me, everyone. As a team, we wanted to go out and do a little bit more than we usually do. I think everybody did that. Everybody stepped up and played their part and we got the win.”

How does it feel to get win without Aldridge?
“It’s a great feeling. We all took it upon ourselves individually to step up and not do anything out of the ordinary or what we already do, but just to do a little bit more and it would make up for him not playing. I think we did a great job with that.”

WESLEY MATTHEWS
“Everybody stepped up and we played well. We know this team is going to score in bunches and we withstood their runs.”

On Denver breaking Portland’s recent record for most 3-point attempts without a make:
“We were able to get the win. We want to correct how many points we gave up inside the paint, but that’s for another day. Tonight we’re going to enjoy this win, our fourth straight.”

On Lillard’s big dunk late in the game:
“It was a big play. Huge momentum play, very timely. He’s going to make plays. We expect that from him.”

POSTGAME NOTES

- With the win tonight, the Trail Blazers have now defeated the Nuggets six consecutive times at the Rose Garden.
- Portland has now won four consecutive games for the first time since March, 2011 (March 2-8).
- Denver's 22 3-point attempts without a make are most in NBA history, breaking the record set by Portland on Dec. 10 vs. Toronto (0-20).
- The Trail Blazers also held the Nuggets to one made field goal outside the paint.
- JJ Hickson recorded his 14th double-double of the season, including his sixth straight, finishing with 18 points and 18 rebounds. His sixth straight double-double is tied for the longest streak in his career (April 5-13, 2011).
- Hickson is just the fourth NBA player to record at least 18 points, 18 rebounds and three blocks in a game this season.
- Hickson’s three blocks is a season high.
- The Trail Blazers tied a season best with 14 makes from beyond the arc.
- Portland’s 50 total rebounds are the most by the Trail Blazers in regulation this season, and its 38 defensive boards are also the most by the team in regulation this season.
- The Trail Blazers recorded 25 assists, tying their season high for most assists in regulation this season.
- Luke Babbitt scored a season-best 14 points, his third straight double-digit scoring effort. Babbitt tied a career high with four makes from beyond the arc, and also set a season high with eight rebounds.
- Nicolas Batum’s five 3-pointers tied a season high (5 times).
- Damian Lillard finished with 12 points and 10 assists, his third double-double of the season.
- Portland’s 11 point lead (25-14) after the first quarter set a season best for largest lead after the first period.
- Denver’s 14 points scored in the first quarter are the fewest allowed by the Trail Blazers in the first quarter this season.