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Roy scorches Suns, lifts Trail Blazers to win

Dec 19, 2008 - 7:35 AM PORTLAND, Oregon (Ticker) -- Brandon Roy made sure the Phoenix Suns' domination of the Portland Trail Blazers ended on Thursday night.

Roy scored a career-high 52 points, lifting the Trail Blazers to a 124-119 victory over the Suns.

The All-Star guard, Roy made 14-of-27 shots from the field, including five 3-pointers, and added six assists and five rebounds, surpassing his previous career high of 38 points set during a double-overtime loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday.

"I can't say the basket was big but my confidence was huge tonight," Roy said. "I just felt like every shot I took was going to go in. My teammates kept feeding my confidence.

"Even shots I missed I felt confident. That's the best game I've ever played. ... Anytime you get a chance to score 50, it's special."

Steve Blake had 22 points and 10 assists while LaMarcus Aldridge contributed 16 points for Portland, which had lost each of its previous 11 games against Phoenix, dating back to March 2006.

"It was a great feeling to break the streak," said Travis Outlaw, who had 14 points and six rebounds off the bench.

Despite 21 points from Roy in the first half, the Blazers trailed, 66-59, entering the locker rooms.

"We stepped up to the challenge tonight. We scrapped defensively and made plays offensively when we needed to," Blazers coach Nate McMillan said.

The All-Star guard almost single-handedly erased that deficit, pouring in 17 points in the third quarter.

"Brandon is just learning how to continue to be one of the best players in the league," McMillan said. "You almost expect him to do this night after night. He knows how to take over a game. He's playing with a very nice rhythm right now.

"When we drafted him we knew he had this potential but what he has done is to find ways to improve his game and take it to another level. His body language, control and demeanor says a lot about his confidence when he has the ball."

With the Blazers trailing, 74-70, with 8:07 left in the third, Roy scored 15 straight points over the next 4:38 to pull his team within one point.

"Brandon really hurt us at times," Suns coach Terry Porter said. "We just didn't do a good enough job with him. He was being aggressive and going to the basket. We tried some different things but it was just one of those nights where guys got hot."

After a free throw by Matt Barnes pushed the Suns lead back to two, Blake nailed a 3-pointer, giving the Blazers an 88-87 advantage with 2:55 remaining in the session.

Portland closed the frame on a 10-6 run capped by Outlaw's tip-in at the buzzer that extended the Blazers' bulge to 98-93.

The Blazers hit 14-of-20 shots from the field in the third without committing a turnover, outscoring the Suns, 26-9, over the final six minutes.

Phoenix went on a 9-0 run midway through the fourth quarter, claiming a 110-106 lead on Amare Stoudemire's jumper in the lane with 6:21 remaining.

Roy snapped the surge with a 3-pointer from the top of the arc, slashing Portland's deficit to one point.

"Brandon was obviously outstanding, he played a great game," Phoenix guard Steve Nash said. "We definitely got a lot of work to do. But we were pretty good, we did a lot of good things.

Nash, who had 15 points and 11 assists, hit a pair of free throws with 1:50 remaining to give the Suns a 119-117 lead.

"We fought hard, we played fairly well, we just didn't get any breaks, and made some mistakes," Nash said. "They got some bounces but they also played exceptionally well."

After a jumper by Aldridge tied the score, Roy sealed the win by drilling a 3-pointer, giving Portland a 122-119 edge with just over a minute left in the game.

"(Roy) took off, he's an All-Star and he took the game over," Barnes said. "We couldn't stop him tonight. ... My hand was in his face a lot of those, once it goes up it was in.

"He just didn't miss, it was just one of those nights for him."