By Caleb Hersch
Posted at 10:28 pm, January 9

The Trail Blazers cruised to an 18-point victory over the Golden State Warriors behind the shooting of an unlikely hero - Steve Blake.

Blake scored 24 points on 5-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc to lead the Trail Blazers to a 109-91 win, their 12th straight victory at home.

Portland has now won all four games they've played since their 13-game winning streak was snapped in Utah on New Year's Eve. The Trail Blazers are now 22-13 on the season and are in sole possession of first place in the Northwest Division for the first time since March 1, 2001.

Blake's 24 points are a season-high and they came early and often - he scored 20 in the first half. Blake left the game in the third quarter with an injury to his left calf, but he had done all the damage that was necessary.

Martell Webster was impressed with the scoring outburst from his point guard.

"We all had confidence with Steve (Blake) tonight," Webster said. "I thought he'd go for 50 tonight. He was that good."

The Trail Blazers jumped out to a 17-4 lead to start the game and finished the first quarter with a 16-point lead. The Warriors cut the lead to seven towards the end of the first half, but the Trail Blazers went on a 10-0 run and retook control.

The Trail Blazers would lead by as much as 25 points at points during the third and fourth quarters. The Warriors accepted their fates early, as Stephen Jackson and Baron Davis combined to play less than 31 minutes. Jackson and Davis each average over 20 points per game, but were held to just nine points between them.

Contributions came from all over the Portland roster as five platers reached double figures. Brandon Roy, who has been struggling with injuries, scored eight points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out a team-high eight assists.

LaMarcus Aldridge scored 19 points on the hapless Warriors, while Joel Przybilla added 10 points, a team-high 10 rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots.

Martell Webster and James Jones each scored 16 points and Travis Outlaw scored eight points, collected eight rebounds, blocked one shot and nabbed three steals.

The Trail Blazers played an incredibly efficient game against the defensively-challenged Warriors. Portland shot 46% from the field including 13-28 from three-point range. The Trail Blazers also managed to rack up 32 assists on their 40 field goals.

Trail Blazers head coach Nate McMillan recognizes that his team is maturing and gaining confidence.

"We are not the same the young team that started the year," McMillan said. "We're more controlled in what we do. We're confident and we expect to win games and it seems like different people step up."

The Warriors were led by 14 points and six rebounds from Matt Barnes and 13 points and eight rebounds from Mickael Pietrus. Both came off the bench, as only one Golden State starter played more than 17 minutes.

The Trail Blazers head out on the road for a seven-game trip that starts in Toronto on Sunday morning. The game is at 9:30 a.m. PST and will be broadcast on KGW. As always, the game can be heard on 750am KXL.

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