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Blazers beat Nets for 7th straight win

Nov 19, 2013 - 5:20 AM Brooklyn, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - LaMarcus Aldridge scored 27 points as the Portland Trail Blazers overcame a sluggish first quarter to top the Brooklyn Nets 108-98 at Barclays Center to claim their seventh straight victory.

The Nets scored on 19 of their first 20 possessions en route to a 40-point opening quarter. Portland settled down defensively after that, as Brooklyn cooled off to the tune of 22 percent (9-of-41) from the floor in the second half.

"I thought it was a testament to our guys as far as how they competed," said Portland head coach Terry Stotts. "They never lost confidence, they kept competing and kept chipping away at it. When you have that belief that you can do something it makes it easier."

Wesley Matthews netted 24 points in the win, while Damian Lillard contributed 19 points and nine assists. Mo Williams added 12 points off the bench.

"It never felt like we were out of the game," said Matthews. "They were on a roll and we weren't getting any stops, we never felt out of the game.

Shaun Livingston, who started his second straight game for the injured Deron Williams, paced Brooklyn with 23 points. Kevin Garnett made his first six shots, but hit just 2-of-13 the rest of the way. The 19-year vet ended up with 16 points and eight rebounds.

The Blazers won their seventh straight game for the first time since 2007, when the team ran off 13 consecutive wins.

Portland trailed 63-56 at halftime before assuming control midway through the third quarter. Matthews tied the score at 69-69 with a driving layup at 4:44 and Aldridge hit a stepback jumper moments later to put the Blazers in front.

"I don't know if it was what Portland did," said Nets head coach Jason Kidd. "We had some great looks on offense but we didn't score."

Williams' floater in the lane with four seconds left had Brooklyn's deficit at eight points heading into the final frame.

Portland quickly pushed its lead to double figures and kept it there until a Paul Pierce layup with 1:03 left made it 105-96.

Earlier, the Nets put on an offensive clinic in the first quarter, but they struggled on the other side of the ball and led just 40-31 after 12 minutes. Both teams shot better than 72 percent in the period.

Lillard came alive for the Blazers in the second, scoring nine points, while Thomas Robinson grabbed five of his seven boards.

A pair of Joe Johnson free throws put the Nets up 10 2:07 before the half. Joel Freeland's short jump hook got it to five, but the crafty Johnson drew a foul just before the half and sank both foul shots for a seven-point advantage at intermission.

Game Notes

Brook Lopez (ankle) and Andrei Kirilenko (back) were inactive for the Nets. Both are considered day-to-day ... Brooklyn shot 33-of-35 from the foul line, while Portland hit 18-of-21 ... The Blazers look to make it eight in a row when they cap a four-game road trip in Milwaukee on Wednesday.