A pair of teams sinking quickly in the Western Conference standings will meet in Rip City on Wednesday when the Portland Trail Blazers play host to the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors suffered their worst loss in five seasons on Monday in Denver, getting blitzed by the Nuggets 123-84.
Rookie Klay Thompson supplied 17 points and Nate Robinson donated 16 for Golden State, which has lost eight of 10 overall and endured its worst setback since a 129-89 drubbing at San Antonio on Dec. 4, 2006.
"We weren't ready. They came out aggressive, they came out pushing the basketball, they came out physical, and by the time we realized what hit us, the game was out of reach," Warriors head coach Mark Jackson said.
The Blazers, meanwhile, are also trying to rebound from a setback on Monday. Portland fell to Houston, 94-89, on its home floor despite 20 points and six rebounds from LaMarcus Aldridge.
Jamal Crawford chipped in 18 points and Raymond Felton added 14 and eight assists for the Blazers, who shot just 39.8 percent from the floor and 6 of 21 from beyond the arc.
Portland is currently 4 1/2 games behind the Nuggets for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West with just eight games to play.
"We have eight or nine games left, every game is important," Portland forward J.J. Hickson said of his team's dwindling playoff hopes.
To make matters worse for the Trail Blazers, Aldridge flew to Colorado on the team's off day to have his troublesome right hip examined, leaving his status for tonight's game unknown. The All-Star had an MRI on the same hip last month that didn't show any structural damage.
Portland opened the season by winning 11 of its first 12 at the Rose Garden but has since sputtered to an 8-10 mark over its last 18 as the host.
The Warriors have dropped two straight to Portland after taking the previous four in the series.
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