No Magic Needed as Lakers Get Win at Portland

Sandwiched between high-profile home games against the Detroit Pistons and the Boston Celtics for the Lakers was a brief side trip north Thursday night that may turn out to be the most significant development of the entire week.

Playing on the road and without Magic Johnson, a combination that probably would have led to a loss as late as a month ago, the Lakers came out strong and finished the same way in beating the Portland Trail Blazers, 110-101, before 12,848 at the Memorial Coliseum.

The victory, made possible by James Worthy’s unceasing offensive production and a nearly perfect free-throw shooting mark, evened the Lakers’ road record at 13-13, after losing two straight games at the Forum with Johnson injured.

That might not seem like much of an achievement, considering that the Lakers have not had a losing road record since 1978, but it proved that their dominance once again travels well.

“This was a big, big game for us,” Coach Pat Riley said. “When I looked at the schedule, I saw this one as the most difficult of the week. (The Trail Blazers) had lost three of four here, but they had a week to get ready for us.”

Actually, the Lakers (33-16) have dominated the Trail Blazers (25-22) no matter the venue or the preparation time. The Lakers have beaten Portland three times this season at the Forum, twice by blowouts, and turned back the Trail Blazers Thursday night without much of a fight.

Locked in a tight Pacific Division race for the first time in several seasons, the victory also helped the Lakers extend their lead over second-place Phoenix to two games.

The operative word for the Lakers on this night was concentration.

Worthy, who made 14 of 17 shots for a game-high 28 points, talked about not letting down after losing to Detroit on Tuesday night. Others, however, spoke of defensive concentration and finding other offensive avenues without Johnson around.

In that case, the road to victory led to the free-throw line. The Lakers, who came in shooting 79% from the line, made their first 29 free-throw attempts before A.C. Green finally was the first to miss with two minutes left.

Green, it turned out, missed three of his next seven attempts in the final minutes, but the Laker lead was not threatened.

Green led the Lakers from the free-throw line, making 17 of 21, the most by a Laker this season. That helped offset a poor shooting night from the field in which the Laker power forward sank only 3 of 13 shots.

The Trail Blazers, in fact, outshot the Lakers, 46.9% to 43.5%. But the disparity at the free-throw line proved the difference. The Lakers made 32 of 36 free throws, Portland 20 of 29.

Most surprising were the perfect free-throw shooting performances of Orlando Woolridge (9 of 9) and Mychal Thompson (2 of 2), neither of whom are known for their accuracy.

Riley, in recent days, has emphasized free-throw shooting, which was a downfall in Tuesday’s loss to the Pistons.

“At this point, everything we do is crucial, the free throws included,” Michael Cooper said. “That’s something Riley told us, that we have to make a conscious effort to make all the points we can now that Earvin is out.

“I think that was one of the differences between tonight’s game and the Piston game. We got it going without Earvin. Usually, he gets it going for us. But we have to execute our half-court offense and play tough defense without him. In the Piston game, we just improvised. Tonight, a game later, we knew we had to concentrate.”

Concentration is what Woolridge, a 72% free-throw shooter, credited with his perfect night from the line.

“Some of the guys who’ve had some problems there--Mychal, A.C. and myself--we’ve been concentrating on them more in practice,” Woolridge said. “Sometimes, it comes back to the simple things.”

Other rudimentary elements that the Lakers used to their advantage Thursday night included a tough defense. Except for Clyde Drexler, who scored 20 of his 26 points in the second half, the Lakers contained all of the Trail Blazers’ offensive threats. Small forward Jerome Kersey scored 21 points, but made just 9 of 22 shots. Center Kevin Duckworth had a miserable night, scoring just 10 points and missing a dunk and a layup in the first half. Caldwell Jones played 20 minutes and did not attempt a shot or a free throw.

Even though the Trial Blazers often went with 7-footers Sam Bowie and Duckworth on the same front line, and even though the Lakers sometimes used Worthy as a big guard, the Lakers held a 44-36 rebounding advantage. Thompson, the former Trail Blazer, had 12 rebounds, while Green had nine and Worthy seven.

The Lakers had a 72-58 lead with 5:30 to play in the third quarter when they went into a lull and Drexler temporarily took control.

After Thompson was called for an offensive foul, Drexler sank a three-point shot with 5:20 left. Then, after Duckworth blocked Cooper’s layup, Drexler responded with a fast-break layup that cut the Laker lead to nine points.

It got serious about 30 seconds later, after Thompson missed another inside shot. Drexler, who later suffered a possible broken nose but continued playing, sank another three-point shot and was fouled by Cooper on the play. His subsequent free-throw gave Portland a rare four-point play and cut the Laker lead to 72-67 with 4:42 left in the quarter. But that was the closest the Trail Blazers would get.

Laker Notes

The Lakers took a wait-and-see attitude when assessing Wednesday’s trade that sent Mark Aguirre to the Detroit Pistons for Adrian Dantley. The trade happened the day after the Pistons beat the Lakers by eight points at the Forum, which had some Lakers wondering why Detroit felt compelled to make a change. “If I was Detroit, I don’t think I’d mess up that chemistry of the team,” Byron Scott said. “They looked pretty together the other night. . . . I wouldn’t say right now that Detroit got the better part of the deal. Mark, being in the Dallas system so long, is used to running. And Detroit is a post-up, isolation team. But Mark can play.” Said Laker Coach Pat Riley: “They (Dantley and Aguirre) are similar in style. Aguirre gives them more depth in shooting. He’s a low-post player, but not the kind of strong, power low-post guy they were looking for. Only time will tell, really, with this trade. I wonder whether a team, at this point in the season, would want to alter their team that much. (Aguirre) is a great talent.Maybe the fact he’s with Isiah (Thomas, his close friend) now will motivate him.”

While the Lakers traveled to Portland, Trail Blazer forward Kiki Vandeweghe remained in Los Angeles, awaiting word on a long-rumored trade to the New York Knicks. Portland officials have given Vandeweghe permission to miss games until a trade can be completed. The Portland Oregonian reported that, in addition to the Knicks’ offer of a first-round draft choice for Vandeweghe, the Indiana Pacers apparently are offering power forward Herb Williams for Vandeweghe. Williams, however, would have to restructure his $950,000 contract. The NBA trading deadline is Feb. 23. . . . Magic Johnson, who did not accompany the Lakers on the trip, will be examined today to determine whether he will be able to play Sunday against the Boston Celtics at the Forum.