Blazers beat the Lakers at the Rose Garden.

Bynum eager to eat up the competition.

Lakers just lost to the Blazers in Portland again, I think that makes it 26 of the last 30 up there in the Northwest. Like always, the crowd was ridiculously loud and though it probably doesn't affect the players, it makes me as a fan feel more agitated by every Blazer bucket than normal. Andrew Bynum had another superb performance, getting what is now a reliable 20/10. Kobe had his too; it was efficient but often it feels like he goes our of his way to iso up his defender.

The loss really falls on the failure at the defensive end where rotations from the weak side were slow to come around, and the hedging of the pick and roll at the top of the key appears to be a task too great for Pau and Bynum. Felton was carving them up by splitting the gap, and Gerald Wallace used his unique mixture of strength and athleticism to muscle his way to 30+ pts, a lot coming from inside the paint. Lakers are back at it tomorrow against Golden State, and if Bynum and Pau don't combine for 40+ points against a terrible frontcourt, a victory is probably unlikely...but I expect Bynum and Pau to get it and lead the Lakers to a comfortable victory. Prediction: LAL 97 - GSW 89