A walk in the park for Portland turned into a nightmare, as New Orleans 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 New Orleans. 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."

New Orleans 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."

New Orleans was led by Smiley (26 points, 11 boards, 1 assists, 3 blocks), Ziegler (25 points, 6 boards, 2 assists, a block), Obryant (23 points, 5 boards, 0 assists, a steal, a block). Portland was led by Smith (30 points, 6 boards, 7 assists, 2 steals), Mcneil (22 points, 3 assists, a block), Kimbell (20 points, 3 assists, a steal, a block).

After the win, New Orleans jump to 5-8 and 3-4 at home. They improve to #4 in the Southwest and move up to #11 overall in the Western Conference. Portland are now 8-7 after the defeat. They hold at #4 in the Northwest and stay at #8 overall in the Western Conference.

box score New Orleans roster Portland roster