BLAZERS: Opening Night

The team hang in there with the Spurs, but ultimately they fell. An encouraging sign is how sincerely they were disappointed. No "moral victory" necessarily, but truly believed they were the better prepared team and should have won that game. That's what I like to see. Brandon Roy had a terrible game, and even says his heel felt great - which in and of itself is enough for me to celebrate. He's gonna have off nights...but a healthy talus bone, that's more than encouraging. The rest of the team executed well offensively (stayed under the dreaded 20 turnovers), but defensively they still need to get some things ironed out in the zone. Too many easy pickins' for the Spurs. Most impressive: Martell Webster. Money from 3-point land and poised and confident in his game. Wait 20 games before we say he's arrived, but this is a good sign. LaMarcus Aldridge looked great offensively as well, but only had 3 rebounds. He was disappointed in his rebounding game and is determined to be more effective there. Przybilla (13 pts, 10 rbs) also reminded us why he was such a great second line of defense. Encouraging game all around.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Halloween was a blast tonight. I was scheduled to go to class this evening but skipped out so I could go trick-or-treating with my little ladies. They are so much fun to watch. There I was, a proud dad grinning from ear to ear the entire time we were out trick-or-treating. They are so full of energy. Running from house to house, amazed at the candy they’re getting. Just on our street alone, they got WAAAY too much candy. Just how it was for me, and doggonit, just how it ought to be. One friend had a pumpkin with a patch over one eye, when you ask for candy, a candy eyeball plops out from under the patch. Funny stuff.

Brooke: “Four Eyeballs I got!”

Costumes this year:
Emery: Veterinarian
Moriah: Arial
Brooke: Tinkerbell

DUCKS: USC goes down

Oregon: 24, USC 17. Well, my prediction of 34-27 got it a decade off, but just about right. Oregon won by a touchdown. Oregon earned this win to the core. More impressively, yours truly got the crucial gameline right, but let's allow the coaches to sum it all up:

Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti: "This was a defensive victory, Coach (Nick) Aliotti put together a tremendous game plan, and the kids executed it. I am very pleased with our secondary."

USC coach Pete Carroll: "Defensively they were a lot better than I anticipated."

In my opinion, one enigmatic play said it all - close to the end of the first half. With a yard to go for a first down at the Oregon 42 and about two minutes left in the half, USC punted. Afraid they can't make a yard on this cupcake Oregon defense?

As for me, it's rough always being right.

DUCKS: Oregon vs. U-S-we'll-C

It's a top-10 showdown at Autzen this Saturday, the first in Autzen history. Oregon (5) vs. USC (9). So many predictions. Oregon is predicted as the 3 point favorite. The Portland Tribune put it well:

"It’ll be best offense versus best defense when Oregon meets USC at noon Saturday at Autzen Stadium. Oregon’s offense averages 550.9 yards and USC’s defense gives up 252.1, each leading the Pac-10. The Ducks average 6.9 yards per play and the Trojans give up 3.7, Pac-10 leaders both. The UO offense has generated 195 first downs and the USC defense has held opponents to 111, again, tops in the league."

I say it'll be a defensive show-down. All things considered, Oregon’s offense is better than USC’s offense. USC’s defense is better than Oregon’s defense. This is the making of a special game. My pick: Oregon 34, USC 27.

BLAZERS: Heal the Heel!

Brandon Roy’s talus bone in his heel is giving Trail Blazer faithful something to fret about. So, I propose a “Heal the Heel” campaign in his honor. I wore my Roy gear at hoops this morning, in an effort to conjure positive vibes and stave off any looming, pestiferous foot demons. I encourage you to do the same. Bust out the red and black #7’s wherever and whenever appropriate.
I’m disappointed, but not discouraged. It’s interesting that initially he thought it was an ankle roll. Kevin Pritchard says the MRI looks better now than it did months ago. Hhhmm, hasn’t he been resting this summer, so it wasn’t aggravated? Now they’ve been playing pick-up ball for a month and it comes back. Sound familiar (2006)? Should he have surgery? We’ll leave that to the experts. I’m most disappointed for B-Roy. He wanted to play summer league, but no. He had nothing to prove and advisors wanted him to rest. Now it’s resurfacing. Surprise! The single non-X-factor, 'sure thing' this year, poof. Gone. (Clapton singing in the distance – “Lately I been runnin’ on Faith”)

UPDATE: A friend of mine is a foot surgeon who performs these surgeries. He was not familiar with Roy's case, but offered this information:
"I looked him up on SI.com and they mentioned heel impingement which is not a term I have heard before and I'm sure is laymens language. Now this is just speculation, but the 2 most common impingments involving the talus are either spurring on the front of the ankle or on the back of the ankle. If it is the back of the ankle. The front of the ankle impinges the ankle from moving up towardsthe nose, the back the opposite way. The recovery from either end would be relatively equal. He may be out from anywhere from 6-8 weeks. Now, thats the general population. He may be back sooner because of his athleticism and some aggressive PT. These should notbe long standing issues that would hinder his career. If it is the heel as it pertains to the achillestendon attachment, that is a different ball game andcan kiss alot of the season goodbye."