The refereeing in game 1.

Sorry if everyone is sick of this subject, but I think the refereeing may be the single most important indicator of how we do in the next few games. The calls in game 1 made me sick. I was shocked. I maybe have never seen a game called so one-sided before. I was at the RG, just as pumped as everyone else, and the referees pissed in my cheerios right along with Yao and Brooks. I got mad, disgusted, depressed, and even jaded with the NBA while watching the game....but after I came home, had time to reflect on how the game was called, and had multiple discussions with everyone at my work about it today, I realized that the game was probably called a lot more fairly than most of us would care to admit. I know, blasphemy, but hear me out.

The Rockets came into the RG ready to play like men. They have been here before. They know how the calls are going to go in the playoffs. They were bruising, banging, cutting, screening, communicating, rotating, boxing out, swishing, rolling, and dominating. They looked so much tighter and more polished than us it was shocking. And it wasn't just the shots going in. It was the defensive rotation, the solid screens, the complete control they had of the paint. They were the aggressors in a big way, and the aggressors usually get the calls to go their way.

The Blazers however, looked like the London sillynannies ( Family Guy reference to all you Peter Griffin fans ). They were reacting most of the game. They were a step slow, an inch short, and a hairs breath away from looking like a joke. They weren't rotating well, resorting to one-on-one plays, not moving the ball, providing incomplete screens, and letting the Rockets dictate everything they do on both ends.

The calls went the way of the aggressors in the first quarter. The refs were calling in favor of the Rockets because they were playing REAL playoff basketball. To the Blazers credit, they tried a few times to match the physical intensity of Houston, but the tone was already set. Also, when the Blazers tried to man up, they did it the wrong way, with LMA lowering his shoulder on more than one occasion right into the defender and getting the O foul, or Roy driving right into the middle of a pack of Houston defenders. The Refs never gave Portland a chance to get back into the game with the lopsided calls, and Portland probably didn't deserve to get back into it. They made their runs, sure, and at times looked like they just might pull out of it, but then Houston answered with authority, as is easy to do when you're up 20 points, and the Blazers reverted back to their JV ways ( for that game at least ).

I bring this up because I think the fouls will determine who wins the next game, not because of the obvious points earned, and minutes it may affect for each teams key players, but because this Houston team is so much about their physical play, that the number of free throws attempted will tell us if we are able to keep pace or not. I would bet money that the team that attempts more free throws in game 2 will be the victor. Sorry for such a long post. We can still win this series. If any team can step up to the challenge, it's us. GO BLAZERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!