Portland, OR (My Sportsbook) - Brandon Roy had 19 points, a career-high 14 rebounds and five assists and the Portland Trail Blazers snapped a five-game losing streak with a 92-88 win over the Seattle SuperSonics at the Rose Garden.
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 18, pulled down 12 boards and blocked five shots, while Travis Outlaw added 19 off the bench. Portland shot just 38.2 percent from the floor and only 69 percent from the line, but hit its free throws down the stretch to pick up just its second win in the last eight games.
Kevin Durant led Seattle with 20 points and six rebounds, while Earl Watson went for 15 and nine assists. The Sonics have dropped three of four on the heels of a stretch during which they won four of five.
Down as many as 14 in the second half, Seattle suddenly found itself within three with under two minutes remaining after a Jeff Green putback made it 87-84. Roy airballed a jumper at the other end and Luke Ridnour corralled the rebound, giving the Sonics a chance to cut it to one or tie.
But Damien Wilkins misfired on a three, and Outlaw drew a foul at the other end that led to two free throws and an 89-84 Blazers advantage with 39.9 seconds left.
Nick Collison's tip-in again made it a one-possession game, but Collison negated that bucket by losing track of Aldridge on a pick and roll. Jarrett Jack hit Aldridge underneath, and a scrambling Collison had to foul with 12.3 ticks on the clock.
Aldridge hit one-of-two at the line, and Jack sealed it by canning a pair inside the seven-second mark, sealing the much-needed win for Portland.
Jack finished with 15 points and six assists, and the Blazers committed just eight turnovers as a team.
"We'll take it," said Blazers head coach Nate McMillan. "We did some good things out there. We wanted to get to the free-throw line and be aggressive and tonight we did. It's always good to get a 'w' and build off of that. I think another factor in our win tonight was that we made some plays down the stretch this time."
Green and Collison had 13 apiece for the Sonics, who made just 38.8 percent of their field-goal attempts. Ridnour finished his night with 10 points.
Seattle led 25-23 after one quarter, but Portland moved ahead 32-28 on an Outlaw bank shot with a little over eight minutes to go before the half. Ridnour tied the game at 34 with back-to-back threes, but Portland closed the half on a 17-7 burst for a 51-41 lead at the break.
The Blazers lead was as many as 14 during the third, but Seattle closed to within 65-60 on a Durant three with 3:20 to go. The rookie then got himself in the open court and finished to trim the margin to three with under a minute remaining, and Portland's lead was just 70-67 going to the fourth.
Seattle briefly took the lead on a pair of free throws from Green with 9:21 to go, making it 74-73. But Jack answered with a three, and Portland was back on top, 85-79, by the six-minute mark.
Game Notes
Seattle was involved in an 11-player, three-team trade earlier Thursday, acquiring Ira Newble and Donyell Marshall from Cleveland in addition to Adrian Griffin and a 2009 second-round draft pick from the Bulls; In exchange Seattle sent guards Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West to the Cavs. This happened one day after the Sonics sent forward/center Kurt Thomas to San Antonio for Brent Barry and Francisco Elson...Portland made a more subtle move, acquiring guard Von Wafer from Denver in exchange for rookie Taurean Green...Seattle center Robert Swift left early in the second quarter with what was reported as a sprained right knee, and did not return; he has already missed 41 games this season...Portland had a season-high 11 blocked shots as a team.
