Notebook: Trail Blazers 109, Suns 71

By Kerry Eggers, for NBA.com
Posted Saturday January 28, 2012 1:20AM

THE FACTS: The Trail Blazers (12-8) broke open a tight game in the second quarter and never looked back in a 109-71 rout of Phoenix Friday night at the Rose Garden. Portland, trailing 24-21 after one quarter, outscored the Suns (6-12) 57-21 in the second and third periods. LaMarcus Aldridge (23 points, seven rebounds), Marcus Camby (20 rebounds) and Jamal Crawford (nine points, season-high 10 assists) had big games for Portland. It was the ninth win in 10 home games for the Blazers, who fell 102-77 in the last meeting between the teams Jan. 6 at Phoenix.

QUOTABLE: "They embarrassed us in their hometown. We were coming off an emotional win (over the Los Angeles Lakers) on a back-to-back and they hammered it to us in an ugly game. We wanted to return the favor, let them know we weren't the same team they played at home. It was more of a statement game for us."
-- Portland's Gerald Wallace.

THE STAT: Portland .473 from the field, won the rebound battle 58-41 and scored 24 points off 22 Phoenix turnovers. The Blazers won the battle in points in the paint 52-36 and second-chance points 19-0.

TURNING POINT: Phoenix, which led 24-21 after one quarter, scored once in its first seven possessions of the second quarter to fall behind 34-26. It was to only get worse.

QUOTABLE II: "From start to finish, our effort was good. Our (defensive) pressure on the ball was good. There wasn't a drop-off when we made substitutions. We got stronger as the quarters went on. This is what we were looking for from our guys. Everybody played well at both ends of the floor."
-- Portland coach Nate McMillan.

HOT: Wesley Matthews, scoreless on 0-for-4 shooting at the half, scored all 16 of his points on 6-for-7 shooting in the third quarter, including 4 for 5 from 3-point range.

NOT: The Suns shot .372 from the field, .308 from 3-point range and .500 from the foul line. They made 9 of 38 shots from the field in the second and third quarters.

QUOTABLE III: "It was us. They beat us by 30 (actually, 25) last time. I can't say they're bad. They came in ready to go. The first quarter was close, but we nailed it down in the second quarter defensively."
-- Portland's Aldridge, asked if the Blazers deserved the credit or the Suns were just bad.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, a Portland native, watched from courtside.

GOOD MOVE: McMillan used 6-foot-8 Nicolas Batum to defend 6-foot-3 Steve Nash for much of the second quarter. Nash, who had four points and six assists in the first quarter, had one point and one assist the final three periods.

BAD MOVE: With the game decided an hour earlier, Phoenix guard Sebastian Telfair took offense when Portland's Elliot Williams blocked his shot after a turnover in the closing seconds. Telfair received his second technical foul of the game and was ejected with seven seconds remaining.

NOTABLE: The 38-point difference was the most one-sided victory over for Portland in its 42-year rivalry with the Suns. The previous biggest margin was 29 in a 133-104 win in March 1987. It was the third-worst defeat in franchise history for the Suns.

UP NEXT: For the Blazers, at Utah Monday, Charlotte Wednesday, at Sacramento Thursday. For the Suns, at L.A. Clippers Memphis Saturday, Dallas Monday Saturday, at New Orleans Wednesday.