Postgame quotes: Wizards 97, Blazers 92
BLAZERS HEAD COACH NATE MCMILLAN
On the game:
“We didn’t get to the free throw line tonight. I thought that was a big key. They won the free throw line. Defensively I felt like we had them doing too much. As far as our switching and some of the things we wanted to do defensively they ended up getting some match-ups that gave them an advantage. They got the ball pretty much where they wanted.”
On travel affecting the game:
“You’ve got to play the game. We were in this game and you have 48 minutes to get yourself together, so no, travel had nothing to do with this.”
On the third quarter:
“I thought we were attacking and we got moving. We still gave up 27 points so it was almost like we were trading baskets, but we did get more aggressive attacking.”
On Wizards players:
“Right now I think Jamison is really hot for them, and Butler’s doing some good things. Randy is doing some good things, but Jamison is really playing well for them.”
BLAZERS GUARD STEVE BLAKE
On returning to DC:
“It is always nice to come back and play here. This was the place that I started and played in school up the road. It’s always nice to hear the support from the fans.”
On today’s game:
“It was a tough loss. We know the Wizards have a lot of talented players and they like to play around Jamison and Butler. Those guys really stepped up today, especially in the fourth quarter.”
BLAZERS GUARD ANDRE MILLER
On the game:
“The Wizards made some tough shots today. It seemed like we played some pretty tough defense, but they found a way to make shots down the stretch and we couldn’t answer them. They have some good players over there. This game wasn’t dominated by just one team. We made some runs then they made some runs. It just came down to which team made the plays down the stretch, and the Wizards pulled it off.”
On getting going today:
“With a team like the Wizards you have to work your way into the game. Unfortunately, I committed some fouls early so it took me awhile to get going. I wanted to try and maintain my aggressive game like most games.”
BLAZERS FORWARD LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE
On the game:
“It seemed like we just kept trading possessions today with them. Down the stretch it seems like we couldn’t keep pace and that’s what ended up being the key in this game.”
On getting going today:
“It was tough to get going this morning. We all wanted to be in last night by midnight. I felt that once we did get going it was a little easier for us. I tried to play with energy the whole game.”
On missing Brandon Roy:
“He gets to the basketball a lot and takes some pressure off of us. I thought they did a good job in keying in on us today. He does a good job of getting us in the penalty and getting us open shots. Anytime a guy does that it makes the game a little easier so it was a little tougher today.”
