Freeland's Trail Blazers drop to 1-2 Preseason Record

In their debut game, the Trail Blazers took a double digits 93-75 victory over a Los Angeles Lakers team missing both Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard in Ontario, CA. Portland commanded the first quarter but the Lakers pulled it back to 44 apiece at half time, however, the Trail Blazers surged to a 13 point lead in the third and didn't look back. Freeland recorded three points, three rebounds and a steal in his 12:17 minutes on court.

After getting off to a good start, the Trail Blazers could not repeat their form on Friday and were defeated 104-93 by the Phoenix Suns. Portland trailed by 13 points at the end of the first quarter but following a 10-0 run in the second they found themselves back in the game. The second half was a similar story with the Suns charging away in the third stanza and the vistors pulling back in the final 10 minutes but it was not enough to secure the win. Freeland contributed a solid 17:33 minutes, six points, three rebounds and an assist.

Last night, the Trail Blazers went down for the second time to go to 1-2 in the preseason after losing 117-100 to the Kings in Sacramento. Portland Head Coach Terry Stotts took the low-stakes opportunity to work in a new zone defence and to experiment using players in different positions and in various line-ups. Freeland got the start at centre, playing 13 minutes and ending the game with two points and four rebounds.

Portland, having played their first three preseason games on the road, now return home to play three-straight at the Rose Garden. First up, the Denver Nuggets tomorrow (17 Oct).