The Temple of Dagon

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Portland Trail Blazers braced themselves for a late onslaught from Kevin Durant. Jerome Boateng Jersey . They still failed to stop him. The 6-foot-9 forward scored 11 of his 46 points in the final 3:23 to help the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Trail Blazers 105-97 on Tuesday night. "When the basket is an ocean, you cant really do much about it," Portland guard Wesley Matthews said. "Hes been on a roll." Durant has scored at least 30 points for eight consecutive games, the longest such streak of his career. He made 17 of 25 field goals, including 6 of 7 3-pointers. "He did what hes been doing the last two weeks," Portland guard Damian Lillard said. "You look up, hes hitting 50 and 45 and 50 again and 40 and up. We knew coming in that hes been shooting the ball well." Reggie Jackson added 15 points for Oklahoma City (32-10), which took a one-game lead over Portland in the Northwest Division. Oklahoma City improved to 9-5 since point guard Russell Westbrook was taken out of the lineup after having surgery on his right knee. LaMarcus Aldridge had 29 points and 16 rebounds, but he went 1-for-8 from the field in the fourth quarter. Durant said Aldridges late struggles might have been a combination good defence by Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka and the Trail Blazers being worn out from their loss to Houston the night before. "Perk and Serge did a great job early on contesting LaMarcus jump shot, but hes a great player and he was knocking them down," Durant said. "In the fourth quarter, of course, after playing last night, hes a little tired. We forced him all the way out close to the 3-point line and made him shoot some tough ones and we were able to rebound and hit shots on the other end." Matthews added 21 points for Portland (31-11), which lost its last two games of a four-game road trip. "Pissed," Matthews said. "Were not happy. Last year we were happy coming off a road trip at .500. Were not that team any more. We didnt come out with the right energy and the right mentality against Houston and they were ready for us. We came out with the right mentality early in this game and KD had a hell of a fourth quarter, so its bitter." Oklahoma City held Lillard to 14 points, well below his average of 21.4 points per game. Portland led 93-90 when Durant was called for an offensive foul. Durant was unhappy after the call, and after Perkins was called for a foul, Durant, still frustrated, hit the scorers table and was issued a technical foul. Portland made two of the three free throws to go up by five. A fired-up Durant responded with a layup, then a 3-pointer to tie the score with 2:52 remaining. "It was really a stupid, stupid reaction by me," Durant said. "I could have hurt my team really badly. I was just more frustrated with myself, turning the ball over. I cant hurt my team like that. This time, it went in our direction. Next time, Ive got to be smarter." Durant seemed to reach another gear after the technical, though. He hit a 3 with 48 seconds left to give the Thunder a 102-95 lead, then another with 26.8 seconds remaining to ice the game. Portland led 48-40 late in the second quarter before Durant sparked a rally with a 3-pointer. The Thunder took the lead with 8.3 seconds left in the first half on a jumper by Thabo Sefolosha, but Lillard responded with a layup with 0.2 seconds left to give the Trail Blazers a 52-51 lead at the break. Portland shot 57 per cent in the first half. Durant scored 20 points on 8-for-11 shooting in the first half, but his teammates shot 13 for 38. Durants jumper early in the second half finally gave the Thunder the lead, but the Trail Blazers handled the surge. A 3-pointer by Nicolas Batum and a bucket from Aldridge gave Portland a 67-62 lead and caused Oklahoma City to call a timeout. The Trail Blazers extended their lead to 75-66, but again, the Thunder closed out a quarter strong. Oklahoma City held Portland scoreless for the last 2:35 of the period. Durant hit a 3-pointer to close the quarter and give the Thunder a 77-75 lead. Portland made just one field goal in the final 3:45. "Total team effort," Durant said. "We didnt get discouraged after they hit tough shots and we missed shots, and we got a good win." The Thunder play at San Antonio on Wednesday night with the top record in the Western Conference on the line. "We know how tough it is to win there," Durant said. "We know how tough that team is. Youve just got to come prepared and with a lot of energy. I think our group is ready to come out there and play our game, and well see what happens." NOTES: Thunder coach Scott Brooks said he plans to vote for Lillard as an All-Star. ... Batum had been playing with a broken left middle finger. He aggravated the injury to his non-shooting hand on Monday night against Houston, but played through it. ... Portland scored the first seven points of the game. ... Durant scored 15 in the first quarter. ... Portland shot 59 per cent in the first quarter to take a 27-21 lead. ... Aldridge became the first NBA player with at least 11 field goals and 12 rebounds in five straight games Antonio McDyess did it from Jan. 3-10, 2001. Rafinha fc bayern munich jersey .C. -- The Charlotte Bobcats said head coach Steve Clifford underwent a successful procedure Friday to have two stents placed in his heart. Holger Badstuber Jersey . -- After enjoying the chance to watch Toronto beat Anaheim, the San Jose Sharks took advantage of a tired Maple Leafs team to move closer to the Ducks in the standings.PHILADELPHIA -- Evan Turner made certain his name will be inked into the starting lineup. Turner scored a career-best 26 points, helping the Philadelphia 76ers rout the Boston Celtics 103-71 Wednesday night to maintain their lead in the Atlantic Division. Before tip-off, Turner denied a radio report that a mystery problem was causing his inconsistent play. Then Turner went out and proved hes just fine. He shot 11 of 19 and grabbed nine rebounds. "Im just trying to build off this and enjoy the moment," Turner said. "Im not saying I told you so." So far, Turner hasnt played like a guy worthy of the No. 2 overall pick in the 2010 draft. He started just 14 games last year and only moved into the lineup two nights ago. But Sixers coach Doug Collins said Turner will be out there for the long haul. He was reluctant to make a change after Philadelphias strong finish last year and hot start this season. After the Sixers lost seven of nine, Collins finally inserted Turner and sent Jodie Meeks to the bench. "Evan is a great leader," Collins said. "He worked his tail off to be a better basketball player in the off-season and he was when he came back. When he didnt start, I know a part of him said I should be. But he didnt say anything. Evan has extreme confidence. He thinks hes the best player on this team." Six Sixers scored in double figures, including Elton Brand (18), Lou Williams (15) and Nik Vucevic (14). Vucevics 12 rebounds were a high for the rookie. Andre Iguodala had 10 points, eight assists and seven boards. The Sixers, a surprise contender a month ago, had lost eight of 10 to drop their lead in the division to one game over Boston, which had won five in a row. But the Celtics were no match for Philadelphia in this one. Paul Pierce had 16 points and Brandon Bass added 12. Rajon Rondo had just 5 and Ray Allen 2. "We just didnt have it," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "We missed shot after shot and nothing was working. But give them credit. They were organized and they played really well. Theyre a good team and we just didnt fight through it." Coming off an overtime win at home over Houston on Tuesday night, the Celtics clearly were sluggish in their 11th back-to-back game of the season. The Sixers, helped by Turners 10 points, led 33-17 after one quarter. Turners best play, though, was an alley-oop pass to Iguodala, who thrilled the crowd with a thunderous dunk. Collinns said Turner is a true point guard and called him the teams best rebounder. Holger Badstuber Shirt. Jrue Holiday has been the starting point guard, but Collins wants to see Turner and Holiday in the backcourt together and share the ball along with Iguodala. "Evan needs the ball. Hes a totally different player when he has the ball," Collins said. "I have to find the right fit. I have to see how those guys play together over an extended period. They are our future." Turner hit a jumper to cap a 14-0 run in the second quarter that gave the Sixers their biggest lead to that point, 49-21. Williams started it off with a 3-pointer and Holiday swished a 3 during the stretch. Turner slammed one in off a pass from Iguodala in the third. Minutes later, he made a driving layup, got fouled, high-fived a fan and then sank a free throw to complete a 3-point play. He nailed a 3 to reach 26 points, surpassing his previous high of 23 during his rookie year. Turner entered the game averaging 7.7 points per game. He shot just 1 for 12 in a 97-93 loss at Milwaukee on Monday. "I didnt worry about anything," Turner said, adding that it helped when Collins told him hes going to keep starting him. "You have to understand that as a pro youre going to have good nights and bad nights." The Sixers havent had much success against the better teams in the league. A convincing win over Boston should boost their confidence heading into the next five-game stretch. After playing Utah and New York, theyll face Indiana, Miami and Chicago. "We had some tired legs and Philly took advantage," Pierce said. "I feel like we can always win a game. I do. I always feel like we have enough to come back. But we just didnt have it tonight." Notes: Former Sixers president Pat Croce received a rousing ovation when he was introduced at half court before the game. Croce once was an athletic trainer for the Sixers and Flyers who rose to part-owner and drafted Allen Iverson with the No. 1 pick in the 1996 draft. ... Celtics are 5-6 in second game of back-to-backs. ... Boston C Jermaine ONeal sat out because of a sprained left wrist. ... Sixers F Thaddeus Young didnt play because he has an upper respiratory tract infection. ... Philadelphia has 19 double-digit wins, and its 11 victories by 20-plus points are the most in the NBA. ... The Celtics were 0 for 8 from 3-point range. The last time they didnt make a 3 was at Orlando on Jan. 22, 2009. cheap jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '