Trail Blazers Rebound in Time : Western finals: Lakers fall, 95-84, as Portland has a 52-33 edge on the boards and cuts the series deficit to three games to two.

This turkey had its neck extended. But for the Lakers, Thanksgiving will have to wait.

The Trail Blazers, trussed and bound by the slow pace, reached deep inside at halftime, blew the Lakers off the backboards and won, 95-84, to cut their deficit in the Western Conference final series to 3-2.

Game 6 is Thursday in the Forum.

The Lakers can use the day off, too.

James Worthy has a sprained left ankle that Laker orthopedist Stephen Lombardo called a mild sprain but Mike Dunleavy said looked “pretty bad at this point.”

Added Dunleavy: “I’m hoping for a miracle by Thursday.”

Magic Johnson made his first five shots, three of the last 14.

Red-hot Byron Scott started three for four, finished one for seven.

Terry Teagle, suddenly ice-bound, is four for 20 over two games.

All those misses, however, paled before the Trail Blazers’ 52-33 rebound edge (26-9 on the offensive end), which was the more remarkable since they had only a 22-19 advantage at halftime.

After that, Lakers beware.

“They attacked the offensive boards,” Johnson said. “We didn’t box them out. You can’t half-body them. You’d body one guy, and here come two more.”

Unlike the aftermath of that 51-28 pounding the Lakers took in Game 2 when the spotlight fell on Vlade Divac, they assumed the responsibility for this one collectively.

This was appropriate since there was enough to go around.

Johnson took eight rebounds, A.C. Green took nine and everyone else split the other 16.

That was the Trail Blazers’ answer to everything they had undergone last weekend. Their offense still looked like a zombie compared to the heady days of last week when they were zipping up and down the court.

The Lakers won the first quarter here for the first time in the series and led, 45-37, late in the second.

Portland Coach Rick Adelman later complimented his team on moving the ball better, but it didn’t look like a clinic. The Trail Blazers won the game on the boards and the defensive end.

“I don’t think you can say, if we don’t get the ball up the court for break opportunities, we’re not going to have a chance,” Adelman said.

“I think that’s what playoff basketball is all about. We can be as patient as they can if we do it right.

“They’re not going to allow you to do it (fast break). They do too good a job of getting back. So you have to have an answer somewhere else.”

That answer was really on defense. Remember, Portland scored 95 points and won.

The Lakers scored 84 and, predictably, lost.

Adelman made one switch, moving Buck Williams onto Worthy and the huge Kevin Duckworth onto Sam Perkins. That, plus the injury to Worthy, combined to take a toll.

This left one mismatch, 6-foot-7 Jerome Kersey guarding 7-1 Vlade Divac. Divac had a decent game--14 points--but Adelman can live with it.

“We had to give them a different look,” Adelman said, “because they were cutting us apart.

“If they want to take advantage of that matchup, go ahead, take advantage of that matchup.”

The Lakers led, 50-47, at the half but sank like a brick in the third quarter when the Trail Blazers outrebounded them, 20-7, and scored seven second-chance points.

Worthy, trying to play with his ankle retaped twice and an electronic nerve stimulator inside his sock, had more and more trouble.

When Johnson’s third-quarter length-of-the-court pass sailed off his fingertips, Dunleavy had seen enough and lifted him.

“He couldn’t push off it,” Dunleavy said. “He couldn’t shoot off it. He had a hard time defensively. There was no sense trying to kill him.

“James wanted to go at halftime. I said, ‘I’ll give you two minutes and see how it looks. If it doesn’t look good, you’re out.’ ”

Said Johnson: “I didn’t have to talk to him. I could just see. When I threw that long pass--that’s a dunk. It was right there. He was like fighting to get to it.”

So Thursday, everyone will bind up his sprains and bruises and play again.

Johnson promises to have his side ready.

“It’s gut-check time,” he said. “Everybody has to go home and say, ‘I didn’t get the job done. I didn’t box my man out.’ We can’t be looking around like we did tonight, wondering whose man that was.”

Otherwise, Game 7 in Portland.

Laker Notes

James Worthy was closeted in the training room taking treatment. Asked by a Laker official if he would play Game 6, he said: “I’m planning on it.” . . . Portland shot 40% after 44% in Game 4 and 37% in Game 3. Clyde Drexler went seven for 18, is 20 for 54 over three games. Terry Porter went six for 16, is 10 for 27 over two games. . . . Duckwalk: Kevin Duckworth was called for traveling twice, making it six in the past three games. He has 23 turnovers for the series. . . . Duckworth, who finally avoided foul trouble: “We also had three great guys officiating this game.”

BUCK WILLIAMS: With Duckworth in a slump, he inspires the Trail Blazers. C2