A walk in the park for Portland turned into a nightmare, as Cleveland pulled off the upset in today's showdown. As usual after a surprise loss, the finger pointing came after the game in the Portland locker room. "Coach didn't really bother preparing us for this game. We'd already been watching films of our next opponent," said Smith.

Bob acknowledged that was true, but said "our next opponent is three times as good as Cleveland. Of course we dedicate more time to preparing for them. I'm not faulting Smith, but if the rest of the team had played as hard we'd have won this game easily. It was a lack of effort, not preparation."

Cleveland coach Bob could care less whose fault it was. "We're thrilled to get the win. They can make all the excuses they want, but we were the better team out there today."

Cleveland was led by Martin (33 points, 6 boards, 1 assists, a block), Courtney (14 points, 7 assists, 3 steals), Berry (13 points, 6 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals, a block). Portland was led by Smith (11 points, a block), Kimbell (19 points, 1 assists, a block), Vanderveer (9 points, 12 boards, 2 assists).

With the win, Cleveland jump to 20-21. They stay at #2 in the Central and remain at #5 overall in the Eastern Conference. After today's loss, Portland are now 21-21 and 10-10 at home. They hold at #4 in the Northwest and stay at #9 overall in the Western Conference.

box score Cleveland roster Portland roster