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Blazers snap skid, hold off Kings in final seconds

Nov 24, 2007 - 7:25 AM By Kasey Postlewaite PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

PORTLAND, Oregon (Ticker) -- Just under 48 minutes after the opening tip-off, a second jump ball sealed the fate of the Sacramento Kings.

LaMarcus Aldridge scored 28 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Travis Outlaw came up with a key steal to lead the Portland Trail Blazers to an 87-84 victory over the Kings on Friday.

Brandon Roy scored just 13 points on 6-of-15 shooting for the Blazers, but he made a layup with 19 seconds remaining to give his team an 85-84 lead and drew an offensive foul on Sacramento's final possession to clinch the victory.

"Coming out of the timeout, we knew they were gonna try and get the ball to (Ron) Artest," Roy said of the charge. "But Garcia grabbed the ball and I knew we was going to try and attack the basket. I told myself if I just stand there, maybe he will run me over.

"The thing I was worried about was if we were going to get the whistle. I think it was big for our team because we have been trying to win games offensively but tonight we did it with our defense. It was risky, but I didn't think about it at the time."

The win snaps a five-game losing streak for the Blazers and extends the Kings' road losing streak to seven games to start the season.

"The time before I had it and I had Brad Miller on me, and I knew I should have taken it to the hole then, so when (Portland coach Nate) McMillan called the same play, I told myself that I either need to draw a foul or get a layup," Roy said about the layup. "Miller came out and I just tried to attack his hip, and I was able to get to the rim. I'm glad because it was a big shot for us."

With Portland clinging to the one-point edge with six seconds left, point guard Jarrett Jack tied up Kings center Brad Miller on an inbounds pass at mid-court to force a jump ball.

"I'm not sure what happened to us at the end," Miller said. "I guess our spacing wasn't good enough there at the end, and we are going to have to work on that, I guess."

Miller won the tap, but Outlaw ripped the ball out of Francisco Garcia's hands with just over one second remaining. Outlaw then converted two free throws to provide the winning margin.

"We had our chance there at the end and we have no one but ourselves to blame," Sacramento coach Reggie Theus said. "We had the ball taken from us down the stretch. We needed one defensive stop and we couldn't get it. That's the ballgame."

After Jack converted a pair of free throws to give Portland an 83-77 edge with 2:30 left in the game, the Kings responded with a 7-0 run - capped by Kevin Marin's 3-pointer with 1:15 to play - to pull ahead.

But Roy, who had been hounded by Sacramento's best defender - Artest - all night, came through in the end.

"I love playing against these great players," Roy said about the matchup with Artest. "Especially in only my second year. It's good for me and my confidence because I feel like he was playing me like I am one of the better players.

"He's tough and strong as an ox, and we were battling a little bit. But we got away with a win, so I don't think he locked me up too much."

Trailing, 74-70, Portland used back-to-back 3-pointers by Steve Blake in a 11-0 run to claim a 81-74 lead with 3:41 to play.

"It felt good hitting those threes," Blake said. "You can't describe (it). You are just happy that you are doing something to help contribute for your team to get a win."

Sacramento jumped out to a 13-3 lead by making six of its first eight shots, while Portland committed three turnovers - resulting in two breakaway dunks - and started 1-of-5 in that span.

But the Blazers fought back behind Aldridge's 13 first-quarter points, trailing only 25-24 after one.

Channing Frye's jumper with 10 seconds left in the second quarter gave Portland its only lead of the opening half, 42-41. Garcia responded by converting a layup with two seconds remaining to give Sacramento a 43-42 lead at intermission.

Portland scrapped their way to a 59-54 third-quarter lead before Sacramento closed the frame on an 11-3 run, claiming a 65-62 lead going into the decisive fourth quarter.

Martin finished with 21 points and Garcia and Artest each added 17 for the Kings.

"You know this is a long season and you're gonna have your troubles on the road," Theus said. "We just gotta get that first one, so we can go from there."