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Rockets hold off Blazers

Feb 9, 2012 - 6:48 AM Portland, OR (Sports Network) - Goran Dragic filled in for an injured Kyle Lowry and scored all 10 of his points in the fourth quarter as the Houston Rockets downed the Portland Trail Blazers, 103-96.

Lowry, who left the game late in the third quarter with a strained right elbow, finished the contest with 12 points.

"Elbow is really sore gotta do treatment and see how I feel in the am thanks for the concern,!!" said Lowry on his Twitter account following the game.

Chase Budinger had 22 points to lead the Rockets, who won their second straight game and got a season-high 66 points from their bench.

Jamal Crawford netted 21 points to go with six assists and Gerald Wallace added 20 points, nine rebounds and five assists for the Blazers, who have lost two straight at home since beginning the season with an 11-1 mark at the Rose Garden. Portland has dropped three of its last four contests.

Down by as many as 19 in the third quarter, the Blazers rallied to tie the game at 82 in the final stanza, but Houston scored eight straight points to make it a 90-82 game midway through the fourth. Courtney Lee began the spurt with a short jumper, Dragic made 1-of-2 from the line, Budinger nailed a trey and Dragic capped the spurt with a layup.

A bit later, Wallace's three-point play cut the deficit to four, but Dragic's three-point play extended Houston's advantage to 96-88 with 3:31 to play.

The Blazers pulled within five late, but that was as close as they got down the stretch.

Luis Scola netted 10 points in the opening period as the Rockets took a 30-28 lead into the second.

The Rockets closed the opening half on a 15-4 run, taking a 60-46 advantage into the break. Budinger, who nailed a pair of treys during the flurry, capped the surge with a layup with 2.9 seconds left in the half.

Houston shot a blistering 66.7 percent in the second stanza.

"They (Houston) came out very aggressive, we weren't aggressive defensively and they ran their offense hard," said Portland head coach Nate McMillan.

Kevin Martin's jumper extended Houston's advantage to 69-50 with 8:10 remaining in the third, but the Blazers used a 13-2 run to pull within 71-63 late in the frame. Wesley Matthews and Crawford netted four points apiece during the surge.

The Blazers used a 10-0 spurt that bridged the third and fourth quarters to tie the game at 77 early in the final frame. Crawford's trey and nice feed to LaMarcus Aldridge for an easy slam capped the surge.

Game Notes

Scola finished the contest with 12 points...The Rockets shot 10-of-23 from beyond the arc and outrebounded Portland 39-29...Houston turned the ball over 23 times while Portland gave the ball away 19 times.