BYLINE: By Peter May, Globe Staff
SECTION: SPORTS; Pg. 37
LENGTH: 765 words
DATELINE: CHICAGO
Michael Jordan unveiled another dimension to his game last night, which is roughly akin to Saudi Arabia discovering gold under all its oil wells. The Bulls franchise destroyed the Trail Blazers in a rain of 3-pointers and led Chicago to a 122-89 rout in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
Jordan made six treys, tying the record for the Finals, and established a record for most attempts (10). All of the treys came in an astonishing 35-point first half - also an NBA Finals record - as the Bulls totally dominated after a sluggish beginning. Chicago turned the opener of the best-of-seven series into a turn-the-channel special by outscoring the Blazers, 38-17, in the third quarter and had the lead to as many as 39 in the fourth.
Jordan finished with 39 points, though he was content to play observer/feeder in the second half, registering 9 of his 11 assists. Scottie Pippen came within a rebound of a triple-double (24 points, 10 assists, 9 boards).
"We got a lot of work to do" before Game 2 tomorrow night, admitted Clyde Drexler, who finished with 16. "We got to play better defense, rebound better and take better care of the ball."
Of all the moves and countermoves in the Blazers' Situation Room before the game, few could have envisioned Jordan's reign of terror from international waters. Entering the game, he had taken only 16 treys in the previous 16 playoff games. And made only five. It wasn't like there was a Michael Adams clone inside him begging to blossom. He just never considered them.
Last night he did more than that. He made them. He had knocked down three in the first quarter, while scoring 18, as the Bulls spotted the Blazers an early 8-point lead. Portland had come out flying, making its first seven shots. Then the starters got into foul trouble and the game started to turn.
The Blazers had to figure it was going to be a long night when, after one, they trailed, 33-30, despite shooting 68 percent from the field. But turnovers killed them (they had seven of their 21 in the quarter) and Jordan led a 16-3 run at quarter's end to give Chicago the lead for good.
In the second, however, was when Jordan really got going. The Bulls led, 45-44, when he reentered the game and things began to happen. To say Jordan had something to do with the turnaround is to say that IBM has a mild influence on the computer biz.
Before the game, he had given Drexler the edge in treys, but only grudgingly. "Clyde is a better 3-point shooter than I choose to be," he said. Now, with the game close, Jordan exploded. He made three more treys as the Bulls erupted for a 19-2 run. The lead was up to 19. Danny Ainge, who was on the Celtics when Jordan hit them up for 63, must have thought he was having flashbacks.
"I was just very relaxed," Jordan said. "I wasn't looking to shoot them, but they left me alone and I really felt comfortable at that distance, so I started firing away. Shots started falling from everywhere. It was like shooting free throws.
Drexler, meanwhile, had no defense for his defense. He said none was needed.
"I hope he takes the same shots in Game 2," Drexler said. "Those are the ones you want him to take. He takes those and you think you're playing good defense. But he made them. You got to give him credit."
The explosion gave the Bulls a 66-51 halftime lead. Jordan's 35 had surpassed the 33 Elgin Baylor scored against the Celtics in the 1962 Finals. Jordan's 63-point game seemed within reach. Technically, of course, Portland still was not out of it. A few minutes into the third, however, the Blazers would shift to Game 2 in their minds while still going through the motions in Game 1.
Chicago opened the third with a 15-2 run, building the lead to 28, and ending any semblance of competition for the rest of the evening. Pippen took over the scoring load, tossing in 16. Portland coach Rick Adelman said, simply, "Offensively, in the third quarter, we were terrible." Gee, coach, is that what 5-for-21 shooting means?
Chicago, by contrast, was doing everything right. They got the loose balls, the rebounds, the easy baskets, and soon were responsible for emptying the Stadium. Chicago scored 34 points off the Portland turnovers, had a 44-38 rebounding advantage, and shot 55 percent to the Blazers' 44 percent.
"I think our quickness and anticipation was a little bit better than theirs," coach Phil Jackson said.
That was a diplomatic way of stating the obvious. Adelman was more direct.
"A lot of times," he said, "the second game is totally different from the first. For our sake, it had better be different."
LOAD-DATE: June 5, 1992
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
GRAPHIC: PHOTO
Copyright 1992 Globe Newspaper Company
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