Portland made light of an unfamiliar opponent on Monday, building a 72-33 halftime lead over the London Lions on its way to a rout in a preseason game at Moda Center. The Trail Blazers were 34-21 ahead after one quarter and then outscored the Lions 38-12 in the second. By the end of the third quarter they had reached 100 points and led by more than 50. The final score is not given in the report on which this piece is based.
The occasion was a historic one for the visitors. According to the club, the Lions became the first British side to face an NBA team, in a game they had described beforehand as a chance to test themselves against that level. They arrived as the reigning champions of Super League Basketball after a clean sweep last season, and are back in the BKT EuroCup this year, under head coach Tautvydas Sabonis.
Scoot Henderson (6'3''-G-2004) was the standout, scoring 14 points in just over 16 minutes with four three-pointers from five attempts, three assists and two steals. Toumani Camara (6'8''-F-2000, college: Dayton) also scored 14, Yang Hansen (7'1''-C-2005) had 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting with four rebounds and four assists, and Sidy Cissoko (6'6''-G-2004) added 13 points without a miss. Portland shot 56.3 per cent as a team, made 32 assists and won the rebounding 51-32. Its starters played limited minutes, which gave younger players meaningful time, and the report's author cautions that the quality of the opposition has to be kept in mind. Henderson's shooting is described as a possible new dimension to his game, and Hansen as a big man for the future. Portland's next game is against the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday.