finish the regular season

PORTLAND, Ore. -- There was some shouting going on in the Trail Blazers locker room after they fell behind by 10 points at halftime to the Rockets. Up 2-1 in their first playoff series since 2011, the Blazers didnt want to mess up Game 4, especially in front of their hometown fans. "In the words of Chuck -- Charles Barkley -- we were playing like wussies," Portland guard Wesley Matthews said. "That was the message to each other." Whatever was said, the Trail Blazers pulled out of their funk and went on to defeat the Rockets 123-120 in overtime Sunday night to take a 3-1 advantage in the series that moves to Houston on Wednesday. LaMarcus Aldridge had 29 points and 10 rebounds in the first win for the home team in the series, while Nicolas Batum added 25 points. It was the third game in the series decided in overtime. The Blazers havent advanced out of the first round since 2000. Portland also hasnt held a 3-1 advantage in a series since the 2000 Western Conference semifinals against Utah, which the Blazers won 4-1. James Harden had 28 points and Dwight Howard added 25 points and 14 rebounds for the Rockets. "The playoffs are a grind," Houston coach Kevin McHale said. "Its a different game than the regular season. Youve got to be built for the grind." Portland trailed by as many as 11 points, but rallied in the fourth quarter. Mo Williams 3-pointer put the Blazers in front 105-104 with 18.9 seconds left. Dorell Wright missed the first of two free throws, making it 106-104 with 8.3 seconds to go. Howard dunked off a feed from Harden with 3.6 seconds left to tie it and Williams missed a 3 at the buzzer to send the game into overtime. Chandler Parsons was hit with a flagrant foul on Aldridge, who made both free throws to give the Blazers the lead to start off OT. Batum scooped up a layup before adding a 3-pointer and Damian Lillard made a layup to put Portland ahead 117-110. Houston rookie Troy Daniels nailed a 3 and Harden landed a jumper to narrow it to 119-117, but Lillard made free throws to extend the lead to four points with 17 seconds left. Aldridge missed a pair of free throws and Daniels was fouled by Wright on a 3-point attempt and made all three shots to narrow it to 121-120 with 8.9 seconds left. After a Portland timeout, Mo Williams made free throws for the final margin. "It was tough," Aldridge said. "I thought it was a gut-check by everybody. I thought our guys took on the challenge." Aldridge opened Portlands return to the playoffs with a franchise post-season-best 46 points in the Blazers 122-120 overtime victory in Game 1, then followed it up with 43 points in the 112-105 win. The Rockets won the third, 121-116 in overtime on Friday night at the Moda Center. McHale again started Omer Asik in place of Terrence Jones. Asik had success against Aldridge in Game 3, helping to hold Portlands All-Star to 23 points. The two teams played closely for most of the first quarter, but the Rockets took a 29-22 lead after an 11-4 run highlighted by two straight 3-pointers from Daniels. Daniels, who spent time in the D-League this season and only made his NBA debut on March. 5, was the unlikely hero of Game 3 when he drained a 3 with 11.9 seconds to go in OT that proved to be the winner. Houston led 61-51 at the half, led by Parsons with 19 points. The Rockets maintained the lead through the third quarter and Hardens jumper from the top of the key stretched it to 92-84 with 8:31 left. Portland got within 94-91 on Batums layup with 6:35 left. Lillards 3-pointer tied it at 94, but Harden answered with his 3 for the Rockets. Aldridge made a layup to put Portland up 102-97, but Howard made three of four free throws to narrow it before making two big blocks. Harden hit free throws to tie it at 102 with 1:11 left. Aldridge missed a layup and Harden hit another two foul shots to give the Rockets back the lead. Parsons finished with 26 points for the Rockets. "Everything you do is magnified and all the little things that were not doing cost you ... and were down 1-3 because of it," Parsons said. NOTES: Houston guard Patrick Beverly did not participate in the shootaround because he wasnt feeling well, but he started the game. .... NBA Commissioner Adam Silver was at the game but he was not available to the media. Silver is facing a storm of controversy surrounding racist comments purportedly made by Clippers owner Donald Sterling. ... The Blazers all wore black socks in solidarity with the Clippers. "I wanted to do something to support our brothers," Aldridge said. ... It was the Blazers 100th overall playoff victory. Cheap College Jerseys . -- Louisville backup quarterback Reggie Bonnafon ran for two touchdowns and passed for another and the No. Wholesale NFL Jerseys . -- First baseman Carlos Pena and outfielder Brennan Boesch have signed minor league deals with the Los Angeles Angels. https://www.cheapnfljerseysjustwholesale.com/. Nine years later, he might have finally figured it out. He had only five rounds in the 60s in his previous eight trips. Cheap NBA Jerseys . Speaking on Leafs Lunch with Bryan Hayes and Jamie McLennan on Thursday, Bernier said it was "very hard" at times being entrenched behind Jonathan Quick and is now excited at the prospect of getting an opportunity to compete with Reimer for the top spot with the Leafs. Cheap NFL Jerseys China .C. -- Jackson Whistle made 26 saves for his first shutout of the season as the Kelowna Rockets blanked the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes 5-0 on Saturday in Western Hockey League action.NEW YORK – Marcus Stroman wasnt in the Blue Jays dugout for Sundays series finale at Yankee Stadium. He was serving the first of what became a five-game suspension for his pitching indiscretion last week in Baltimore. Stroman appealed the six games he was given for throwing a fastball over the head of the Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph, an incident which took place one inning after Joseph spiked Jose Reyes during a play at home plate. The suspension was reduced by one game. It is a paid suspension. There was no in-person hearing. In fact, according to the ballclub, neither Stroman nor the team played a role in the process. The Major League Baseball Players Association negotiated down the original ruling. The net effect of the process results in Stromans final start of the season being pushed back one day. He was scheduled to start against Seattle on Thursday but, instead, could pitch on Friday against, you guessed it, Baltimore. Manager John Gibbons has said he would go with a bullpen-by-committee on Thursday in the event Stroman was ineligible to pitch. Todd Redmond may be the first to appear because, according to Gibbons, he could log the most innings. It has been an impressive rookie campaign for the 23-year-old Duke University alumnus. Stroman has won 10 games as a starter, posting a 3.29 ERA and 1.147 WHIP. JOHNSON DRAWS IN Dan Johnson arrived at Yankee Stadium on Sunday morning and found himself in the starting lineup. It marked his first start since July 30 in Boston, after which he went on the disabled list with a strained hamstring. Johnson came off the ddisabled list on Sept.dddddddddddd 2 after completing a minor league rehabilitation assignment and has had only one at-bat since, a pinch-hit appearance in the Sept. 14 game versus Tampa Bay. Circumstances seem to have conspired against Johnson making more appearances down the stretch. “There have been numerous times from just about the fifth inning on, situations that arise and say if this happens, this happens, youre hitting and each time it seems its gone the other way,” said Johnson. Johnson couldnt predict what effect the layoff would have on his timing at the plate. “Sometimes its okay and sometimes its not,” said Johnson. “All you can do is just prepare and go out there and give everything Ive got. Its like one of those things where Ive got to try to work some at-bats, see some pitches and try to get my timing back as soon as possible.” Johnson went 0-for-3 with a walk on Sunday afternoon. STREAK SNAPPED The Blue Jays streak of starting pitchers going at least six innings came to an end at 26 games on Sunday. Drew Hutchison threw four-plus, allowing a home run to Brett Gardner and a single to Derek Jeter in the fifth inning before manager John Gibbons gave him the hook. ONE LAST STAND The Blue Jays return home for seven games to finish the regular season. Theyll play the Seattle Mariners for four, starting Monday. The American League East champion Baltimore Orioles will come in for three beginning on Friday. With Sundays 5-2 loss to the Yankees, Toronto concluded its 81-game road schedule with a record of 37-44. ' ' '