Blazers tied in West

Portland routs Los Angeles on the road 106-77 to even the conference final series at 1.

©Associated Press, published May 23, 2000

LOS ANGELES -- Rasheed Wallace didn't blow his temper this time and the Portland Trail Blazers blew out the Lakers.

[AP photo] Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant, left, and Portland Trail Blazers' Greg Anthony chase a loose ball during the third quarter.

Wallace, on his best behavior after being ejected from Game 1 for getting two technical fouls, had playoff career-highs of 29 points and 12 rebounds Monday night as the Blazers stunned Los Angeles 106-77, the Lakers' most lopsided loss of the season.

Wallace made three three-pointers in a 20-0 third-quarter outburst as Portland evened the best-of-seven Western Conference final 1-1.

The Lakers lost at home for the first time in eight playoff games and the second time in 26 games since losing to the Blazers on Jan. 22. Los Angeles is 43-6 at home.

The series resumes Friday in Portland.

Wallace had 11 points and five rebounds in the third quarter, when the Blazers outscored Los Angeles 28-8, tying the Lakers' playoff low for that quarter and just two short of the NBA record set by Atlanta against Boston on May 6, 1986.

Scottie Pippen had 21 points and 11 rebounds for Portland. He scored 17 points in the first half as the Blazers took a 48-45 lead.

Shaquille O'Neal, averaging 30.8 points in the playoffs, had 23 points and 12 rebounds, but 14 of his points came in the fourth quarter, when the Lakers never got closer than 18.

Kobe Bryant was the only other Laker in double figures with 12 points, but was 2-for-9 from the field.

The way the Blazers played the third quarter there was no reason for the "Hack-a-Shaq" strategy that kept sending O'Neal, a poor free throw shooter, to the free-throw line in Game 1.

The Lakers went 2-for-15 in the third quarter and were outrebounded 14-5, even though O'Neal played the entire 12 minutes.

Brian Shaw's three-pointer cut Portland's lead to 56-51 with six minutes left in the third, but it was the Lakers' last field goal of the quarter.

Steve Smith's inside basket started the run and Wallace's third three ended it, putting the Blazers ahead 76-51 with 8.5 seconds left in the quarter. Bryant's two free throws with 1.3 seconds allowed the Lakers to avoid tying the NBA playoff record for lowest-scoring third quarter.

Portland coach Mike Dunleavy drew a technical with 6:48 left in the third quarter when Arvydas Sabonis was called for his fourth foul in a collision with O'Neal under the Lakers' basket. Portland outscored Los Angeles 22-6 the rest of the quarter.

O'Neal, in foul trouble and frustrated by the Blazers' double-team, scored just six points in the first half and had nine through three quarters.

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