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Aldridge leads Portland past Boston

Nov 16, 2013 - 6:12 AM Boston, MA (SportsNetwork.com) - LaMarcus Aldridge tallied 27 points and 12 rebounds as the Portland Trail Blazers never trailed and took down the Boston Celtics, 109-96, from TD Garden.

Mo Williams added 18 points and eight assists off the bench while Nicolas Batum netted 18 points to go with five rebounds and six helpers. Portland has won five straight and improved to 7-2 on the young season.

"We want to keep this winning streak going so that is one of the reasons we needed this game," said Batum.

"It was good to play a good game from start to finish," said Portland head coach Terry Stotts. "I thought Boston played well. They played the way they have been playing all season."

Jared Sullinger paced Boston with 26 points off the bench on 11-of-18 shooting from the floor. Jeff Green scored 14 points and Jordan Crawford put in 11 points with five assists as the Celtics lost their second straight on the heels of a four-game winning streak.

"I think that was on us. You gotta give Portland a lot of credit," said Sullinger. "They executed a lot of stuff and I thought that was on us."

Portland led 73-70 midway through the third period and closed the quarter on a 17-8 run to take control. Aldridge got things going with a turnaround jumper at the 4:52 mark and scored eight more points during the surge, which Williams capped with a pair of free throws with 10 seconds left in the third.

Courtney Lee and Sullinger made triples around a Williams jumper early in the fourth to pull the Celtics back within seven at 96-89, but the bench unit held Portland's edge with a Thomas Robinson layup and Dorell Wright trey.

The Blazers led by double figures for the remainder of the game.

Sullinger got off to a quick start, making all four of his first-quarter attempts for eight points. Damian Lillard scored four of his 17 points in the first to help Portland to a 23-21 lead after the opening 12 minutes.

The Celtics took control early in the second quarter. After Lillard's triple gave the visitors a 26-23 advantage, Vitor Faverani scored five straight as part of a 7-0 Boston surge. Phil Pressey hit a trey moments later to extend the lead to eight, but Portland regrouped out of a timeout and tied the game at 41-41.

Batum hit a pair of 3-pointers late and the Blazers led 57-51 at intermission.

Game Notes

Boston's reserves outscored their counterparts, 57-31 ... Portland won the rebounding battle, 47-34 ... Portland's Wesley Matthews had 13 points ... The Blazers' four-game road trip continues in Toronto on Sunday, while the Celtics will visit Minnesota on Saturday.