Down 18, Blazers rally past Bobcats
AFTER six games in 8 days on the East Coast, you might think the Portland Trail Blazers might be ready to run out of steam. You'd be wrong.
AFTER six games in 8 days on the East Coast, you might think the Portland Trail Blazers might be ready to run out of steam. You'd be wrong.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 25 points and 13 rebounds, Luke Babbitt hit a pair of clutch three-pointers and Portland overcame an 18-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the host Charlotte Bobcats, 118-112, in overtime Monday night.
The Blazers trailed by 97-79 with 5:17 left in regulation but stormed back to tie the score and sent it into overtime on Babbitt's three with 22 seconds left.
"We showed a lot of heart and determination," Aldridge said.
To win their second straight game the Blazers had to find a way to stop Ben Gordon, who set a Bobcats franchise record with eight three-pointers and finished with 29 points to eclipse 10,000 for his career.
Damian Lillard had 24 points and Nicolas Batum had 17 points and 13 rebounds for the Blazers.
"We are showing that anything is possible if we crack down and we play defense," Aldridge said.
In other games *
At Auburn Hills, Mich., Brandon Knight scored 17 points as Detroit beat Cleveland, 89-79.
* At New Orleans, Ryan Anderson's 22 points led the Hornets to a 102-81 win over Milwaukee.
* At Denver, JaVale McGee had 17 points and five blocks, and the Nuggets withstood a late rally to beat Toronto, 113-110.
* At Salt Lake City, Blake Griffin had 30 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 105-104 win over Utah.
Noteworthy *
Miami forward LeBron James was named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year. James is the first NBA player to win the award since Heat teammate Dwyane Wade in 2006.
* Los Angeles Lakers guard Steve Blake will undergo laparoscopic surgery on Wednesday to repair a torn abdominal muscle and will miss at least 6 to 8 weeks. Blake has missed 10 games since being diagnosed with the strain on Nov.12.
* Brooklyn center Brook Lopez underwent a precautionary MRI on his sprained right foot that came back negative, the team announced. Lopez, who has missed the last two games, is listed as day to day.
* Chicago guard Rip Hamilton will be out indefinitely after tearing the plantar fascia in his left foot in a win over the Sixers on Saturday.