PORTLAND, Ore. — Forward LaMarcus Aldridge scored 26 points and snared 14 rebounds as the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Houston Rockets 105-100 Wednesday night at the Moda Center.
Forward Nicolas Batum collected 18 points, nine rebounds and six assists and center Robin Lopez chipped in 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Trail Blazers (42-20), who moved ahead of the Rockets (43-21) by percentage points into third place in the Western Conference playoff race.
Forward Corey Brewer came off the bench for 23 points, guard James Harden had 18 points and forward Terrence Jones contributed 17 points and 12 boards for the Rockets.
Behind Aldridge (15 points, five rebounds) and Lopez (10 points, seven boards), Portland took a 54-53 advantage into intermission. Harden scored 14 points before the break for the Rockets, who were outrebounded 31-18 in the half.
With Aldridge in foul trouble, Houston quickly took control in the third quarter, seizing a 61-54 lead. Three straight 3s — the last two by forward Meyers Leonard — pulled the Blazers on top 68-67. Consecutive baskets by Aldridge gave Portland an 80-74 advantage heading into the final period.
The Blazers led 99-88 with three minutes remaining. The Rockets came back with a 7-0 run capped by a steal and breakaway layup by Brewer to cut it to 99-95 with 1:32 to go. Guard Arron Afflalo sank a pair of free throws to improve Portland’s lead to 101-95 with 51.6 seconds left.
Brewer’s 3-pointer cut the difference to 101-98 with 47 seconds remaining. Afflalo missed a 3-point attempt, but the Rockets knocked the ball out of bounds with 23.2 seconds to go. Brewer’s steal and breakaway layup made it 101-100 with 15.3 seconds to play.
Afflalo’s two foul shots gave Portland a 103-100 lead with 12.7 seconds left. After a timeout, Brewer missed a 3-pointer. Portland guard Damian Lillard closed out the win with a pair at the line with 3.0 seconds to go.
Harden had 10 points as Houston took a 29-26 lead into the second quarter. The Rockets stoked the margin to 38-31, but Portland responded with a 10-0 run to go in front 41-38. The Blazers settled for a 54-53 edge going into halftime
NOTES: Portland G Wesley Matthews underwent what the team termed as successful surgery to repair a torn left Achilles’ tendon. The Blazers’ coaches and players wore “With Wes” T-shirts during pregame warmups. “We miss Wes,” Portland coach Terry Stotts said. “That’s not going to change. But everybody realizes we have to move forward.” … In his previous 10 games since returning to action after recovering from a foot injury, Houston F Terrence Jones has averaged 15.7 points and 9.6 rebounds, shooting .548 from the field (63-for-115). “There was real question whether he would come back,” Houston coach Kevin McHale said of the Portland native. “I’m happy for him. He’s still rounding into NBA fitness, but he’s been good for us.” … Houston C Dwight Howard missed his 20th straight game as he rehabs from a knee injury. The Rockets hope he will be able to return in a couple of weeks in order to play a series of games before the playoffs, but we just don’t know much yet, “McHale said. “Dwight will be ready when he’s ready, and we’ll go from there.