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PORTLAND, Ore. Warren Moon Jersey . -- Just when it appeared Portland was cruising to a victory that would avoid its first three-game losing streak of the season, Torontos DeMar DeRozan put a scare into the Trail Blazers. Holding a 16-point lead with 7:41 remaining, Portland suddenly had to mount a rally of its own, hitting four free throws during the final 11.8 seconds to pull out a 106-103 win Saturday night. LaMarcus Aldridge had 27 points and 15 rebounds and Damian Lillard hit a go-ahead free throw with 11.8 seconds left to help end the Blazers two-game losing streak. Lillard and Wesley Matthews scored 21 points apiece for Portland and Nicolas Batum added 18. DeRozan was a one-man wrecking crew down the stretch, scoring 30 of his 36 points during the second half. DeRozan, who also had 12 assists, scored 16 points during the third quarter and 14 in the fourth. The fourth-year All-Star guard had a hand in 22 of Torontos 26 second-half baskets, with 12 field goals and 10 assists. Kyle Lowry added 23 points for Toronto. The dramatic win helped Portland end its worst offensive slump of the season. The Blazers, the NBAs top scoring team at 108.4 points, came into Saturday having scored season lows of 81 and 88 points in their past two games. Aldridge said there wasnt a sense of relief despite the hair-raising finish. "We know that we had control from the beginning so it was just about staying solid the whole game and trying to close it out. We did that," Aldridge said. Matthews said after losing back-to-back games, to Golden State and Memphis, "this was a must-win game, and that was the sense of urgency we took into shootaround and the urgency we start the game with." DeRozan and the Raptors nearly spoiled Portlands breakout game. Trailing 57-40 at halftime and by as many as 19 points during the second half, Toronto made a prolonged charge at Portland. During the third quarter, the Raptors got as close as six points before Portland hit four 3-pointers during a four-minute stretch to regain a double-digit lead. Then DeRozan led Toronto on a fourth-quarter rally, when a 16-2 run over a five-minute stretch gave the Raptors a 103-102 lead on two free throws by DeRozan. "He was voted an All-Star for a reason. Hes capable of getting hot and carrying a team," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. Despite the near-comeback, Toronto coach Dwane Casey said the Raptors were sunk from a poor first half. "It wasnt us. We picked it up in the second half, but you cant spot a good team like Portland that many points and expect to survive," Casey said. With Portland trailing for the first time in the game, Lillard went on the offensive, drawing a foul while driving to the basket with 11.8 seconds left. Lillard hit both free throws to give the Blazers the lead, then Portlands defence stepped up when Matthews forced DeRozan into a turnover. Matthews said all he could think about during the final few minutes was making a play to stop DeRozan. "We blew a 20-point lead, and we did a similar thing when we played out there in Toronto. DeRozan made tough plays, the rest of the team make tough plays. We just got the timely stop we needed," Matthews said. Batum hit two free throws with 0.1 seconds left to seal the win. At the games outset, the Blazers got their sluggish offence going by turning up their defence, holding Toronto to 35 per cent shooting (14 of 40) during the first half. Aldridge kick-started Portlands performance with 12 points and 11 rebounds during the first quarter to stake Portland to a 31-19 lead. Helped by two Portland technical fouls, Toronto went on a 10-2 run midway through the second quarter to cut the deficit to 43-34. But Lillard went to work, punctuating a 12-point second quarter with a driving windmill dunk to put the Blazers in front 50-36. NOTES: Toronto reserve guard Greivis Vasquez missed Saturdays game with flu-like symptoms. Vasquez, acquired from Sacramento in a Dec. 9 trade, is averaging eight points and 4.5 rebounds a game for the Raptors. . Aldridges 11 first-quarter rebounds is one short of the franchise record for a quarter, held by three different players. . Portland is one of five NBA teams not to lose three consecutive games this season. . The Blazers won their sixth consecutive game in Portland over Toronto. The Raptors last won in Portland in 2006. Zach Mettenberger Jersey . The teams official Twitter account quoted coach John Tortorella on Friday saying that Kesler "has a sprained knee and is out at least a couple of weeks". Delanie Walker Titans Jersey . -- Ryan Mallett played solidly in his first chance at quarterback for the New England Patriots.HOUSTON -- Jed Lowrie had plenty to say about the Houston Astros after he was hit by a pitch that led to the ejection of Paul Clemens in Oaklands 10-1 win on Thursday night. The Astros were swept by the As in a three-game series in Oakland last week and there still seemed to be some animosity between the teams from an 11-3 loss in the first game of that series. In that game, Clemens appeared to try to hit Lowrie with a pitch in the third inning after Lowrie had attempted a bunt in the first with Oakland up by seven runs. Houston manager Bo Porter came out of the dugout to scream at Lowrie after he hit a fly out after two inside pitches. On Thursday night, Clemens was tossed after hitting Lowrie on the backside with the first pitch of the at-bat with Oakland leading 8-1. Lowrie had doubled off of him in the fifth. "Its flat-out embarrassing," Lowrie said of the incident. "Theres no other way to say it. Every perspective, every angle you look at it its embarrassing. That kind of conduct shouldnt be condoned." The Astros denied that Lowrie was hit intentionally. "There was no carry-over on my end," Clemens said. "What happened in Oakland was squashed in Oakland. Bad pitch there. It just so happened I cut a fastball. We wanted to go inside on him." Lowrie got a bit of justice when Donaldson hit his second home run after the plunking. "I love it. I love it," Lowrie repeated when asked about the homer. Porter was evasive when asked if Clemens hit Lowrie on purpose. "I think the game of baseball takes care of itself," he said. "George Springer got hit tonight and its part of the game." Lowrie said hes never seen anything like this and that he holds Porter responsible for what happened. "At the end of the day the buck stops with him so if you look at it that way, yes, hes the one thats responsible for players conduct," he said. Josh Donaldson hit a pair of two-run homers to help Athletics cruise to the victory. It was the first career multihomer game for Donaldson, who connected in the first inning and pushed the lead to 10-1 with a second shot in the seventh. Alberto Callaspo added a two-run homer in the third and Lowrie had three hits for the As, who improved to 24-5 against Houston, whiich joined the American League before the start of last season. Bishop Sankey Womens Jersey. Scott Kazmir is off to a 3-0 start for the first time in his career after allowing five hits and a run with seven strikeouts in six innings. He lowered his ERA to 1.62. The Athletics jumped on Houston starter Brett Oberholtzer (0-4) early and tagged him for a career-high six runs on and eight hits, which tied a career-high, in just 3 2-3 innings. Houstons only run came on a bases-loaded walk in the first inning and they had trouble stringing any hits together. They had a terrible night on defence, committing five errors after entering the night leading the majors with a .992 fielding percentage and just seven errors. Donaldsons towering 389-foot homer, which clanged high off the foul pole in left field, gave Oakland a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Houston cut it to 2-1 when Chris Carter drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the inning. The trouble continued for Oberholtzer in the second inning when Craig Gentry doubled with one out. He then plunked Brandon Moss before a two-out RBI bloop single by Coco Crisp. Crisp advanced to second on an error by Springer on the play. Donaldson hit a leadoff double in the third and scored on a single by Derek Norris with one out to make it 4-1. Callaspo followed with his two-run home run to the Crawford Boxes in left field to push the lead to 6-1. Gentry ended up on second base after a fielding error and a throwing error by Matt Dominguez on the same play. Moss added an RBI single in the fifth inning and Lowrie had a run-scoring double later in the inning to push the lead to 8-1. NOTES: As left fielder Yoenis Cespedes left the game in the seventh inning with a strained left hamstring and manager Bob Melvin said he expects him to be out a couple of days. ... Athletics RHP Jesse Chavez opposes RHP Brad Peacock in the second game of the series on Friday night. ... Oakland RHP A.J. Griffin, sidelined since the start of the season with an elbow injury, will visit Dr. Thomas Mehlhoff in Houston on Tuesday for a second opinion. ... Houston reliever Matt Albers wasnt available for a third straight game on Thursday because of tightness in his right shoulder. Porter said he doesnt think the problem is serious. cheap jerseys from china cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
