Guest Sandman9000 Report post Posted December 21, 2002 From ESPN.com. They don't know I took it from them. OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- The Portland Trail Blazers' already poor image has been tarnished again -- drugs, domestic violence, and now an ugly on-court fight. After one of Rasheed Wallace's finer performances, he suddenly found himself right in the middle of an all-out brawl that even reached into the stands. Wallace scored Portland's final six points, including a game-winning fadeaway jumper at the buzzer, in the Trail Blazers' 113-111 victory over Golden State on Friday night, then things got completely out of control. After racing to congratulate Wallace, his teammates rushed to the aid of Bonzi Wells. Wells and Golden State's Chris Mills were battling for position on the shot and were still tied up after the ball went through. As the two exchanged words and then began angrily pushing each other, the Warriors' Troy Murphy entered the fray and threw punches. Golden State coach Eric Musselman ran across the court and separated Wells from the fight. Ruben Patterson and Murphy then began fighting as both teams were pushing each other around and officials tried to break it up. "We've got to make sure we don't fight,'' Patterson said. "But when three or four guys are jumping on us, we've got to support each other.'' Police officers ran up into the stands as fans started yelling, rushing the court and throwing things at the Blazers as they made their way to the locker room. One man in the crowd was handcuffed and subdued by four security officers. He threw a wad of gum at Wallace, sparking another confrontation with several Blazers. One Portland player, who could not immediately be identified, started running into the stands and a couple others -- including Wallace -- were trying to grab the fan. Trouble is nothing new for this team, though this time Portland's Scottie Pippen pointed the blame at Golden State. "It's not about reputation,'' Pippen said. "They lost the game. It's about their reputation, too.'' Wallace led the NBA in technical fouls the last three seasons, including a record 41 in 2000-01. He also threw towels in the faces of teammate Arvydas Sabonis and referee Gary Benson that season. Last month, Patterson was charged with assaulting his wife less than a week after guard Damon Stoudamire and Wallace were cited for marijuana possession. Stoudamire and Wallace both admitted smoking marijuana to the arresting officer, according to a police report. The alleged offenses by Portland players range from underage drinking to drug possession to attempted rape. After things calmed down, "Ave Maria'' played over the public address system as fans exited in a state of disbelief. "I don't think we dislike each other,'' Golden State's Antawn Jamison said. "In a close game like that there's a lot of emotion involved. Sometimes guys go over the top.'' Wallace made two free throws with 1:14 left and a basket with 37.6 seconds remaining that tied it. He also had a key block in the final minute. The Blazers won their season-high fourth straight and snapped Golden State's three-game home winning streak. Gilbert Arenas and Jason Richardson scored 23 points each to lead the Warriors, but Richardson was scoreless in the second half. Jamison added 21 points. Wells just missed having his third straight 30-point game, finishing with 28 points, six rebounds and five assists. He led six Trail Blazers in double figures. The lead changed hands six times in the fourth quarter and there were five ties. Murphy's baseline jumper went in and out with 15.6 seconds left, then Portland called timeout. Pippen inbounded the ball near midcourt to Derek Anderson, who passed back to Pippen. He got the ball to Wallace, who took the fadeaway shot that swished through. Wallace finished with 16 points, eight in the fourth quarter. "You want to make him take that fadeaway,'' Murphy said. "It's an extremely difficult shot and he made it. It's disappointing to lose on a last-second shot after playing so hard.'' Murphy refused to discuss the fight, as did Mills and Richardson. Wow, can the Blazers self-destruct a little more? What's next, Wallace punches out a ref? Pippen arrested for smoking crack? (Whoops, forgot that was Shawn Kemp last year.) What hasn't this team done yet? And to think, they got rid of Kemp and still have tons of headaches. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest DawnBTVS Report post Posted December 21, 2002 Reading that Troy Murphy come in and immediately started throwing punches, I'd place the blame SOLELY on the Golden State Warriors as they started the fray and the fact that the fans were throwing stuff at the Blazer player is just awful...reminds me of the Browns incidents, etc. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest El Satanico Report post Posted December 21, 2002 They did this after their team lost fair and square so why must you compare it to the Cleveland incident. Going nuts after your team lost fair and square is totally different than going nuts after the refs screw your team by doing what the rule book says can't be done and reviewing a play after the next snap of the ball. I'm not saying throwing bottles is a good thing, but at least Cleveland fans had a good reason to be pissed off. The Golden State fans had NO reason to be pissed off enough to do stuff like that so don't compare them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest kingkamala Report post Posted December 22, 2002 The Golden State Warriors have FANS? You learn something new everyday I guess. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest The Czech Republic Report post Posted December 22, 2002 The Golden State Warriors have FANS? There's a Golden State? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest alkeiper Report post Posted December 22, 2002 Assuming that wasn't a joke, they play in Oakland. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Agent of Oblivion Report post Posted December 22, 2002 Fighting should be allowed in all sports. You've got it in Hockey. Boxing is nothing but. Football's already violent, so it wouldn't be that much of a change. Basketball's got some big gangly bastards, so it would be fun to watch. Who can forget Manute Bol getting in a scrap with that one guy? Not the Fridge on that celebrity nonsense either. It was actually in a game, and it was HILARIOUS. I might actually care about Tennis if a catfight between Kournikova and Martina Hingis was possible. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Vern Gagne Report post Posted December 22, 2002 It was an overrated fight. At least not WWIII, has SportsCenter acted like last night. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest kkktookmybabyaway Report post Posted December 22, 2002 Hell, I'm amazed that both teams scored 110+ points... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Vern Gagne Report post Posted December 23, 2002 Both teams should be scoring 100+ every night. Fucking Coaches. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Mad Dog Report post Posted December 23, 2002 Wow more Blazers players got in trouble for that then Warrior's players. How did Troy Murphy get nothing for this? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest ant_7000 Report post Posted December 23, 2002 Chris Mills was looking for Bonzi Wells in the locker room and then he blocked off the team bus with his car calling out the Blazers. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest nikowwf Report post Posted December 23, 2002 Blazers have no goodwill with the officials or the league...there fault / not their fault...won't matter. League will hit them hard. niko Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
