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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, November 1, 2009

NBA: Roy has 16 points to push Portland to 83-74 win


By JEFF LATZKE
AP Sports Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY — Steve Blake scored 18 points and Brandon Roy made a late push to finish with 16, and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 83-74 on Sunday night to split a two-game road trip.

One night after scoring 42 points in a loss at Houston, Roy struggled to get anything going on offense — and so did Kevin Durant, a fellow Rookie of the Year.
Roy made just four of his first 16 shots before finally finding a way to hurt Oklahoma City at the free throw line. While Durant continued to misfire on jump shots, Roy knifed his way into the lane repeatedly to earn trips to the foul line and help Portland inch away.
His three-point play off a driving layup gave the Trail Blazers a 70-62 lead with 3:59 to play.
Roy didn’t attempt his first free throw until there was 5:11 left, but he got aggressive from then on. He went 5 for 7 from the line the rest of the way as Portland did something it couldn’t do on his big night — win.
Durant scored 16 points on 3-for-21 shooting and missed all five of his 3-point attempts in the latest showdown between the top two picks in the 2007 draft.
Greg Oden, the No. 1 pick that year, had 12 points and 10 rebounds. He scored six of Portland’s first 10 points but wasn’t a major factor through most of the game. He hit two free throws with 1:02 left, giving the Blazers a 79-69 edge, after Etan Thomas tugged on his jersey in an effort to send the 7-foot center to the foul line.
Travis Outlaw also scored 12 and Martell Webster had 10 points for Portland.
Russell Westbrook led Oklahoma City with 23 points but also matched his career-high with nine turnovers. He had been averaging 11› assists and only 3› turnovers through two games after leading the league in giveaways last season.
Jeff Green added 19 points and 11 rebounds as the Thunder shot just 34 percent.
Most of Webster’s points came in a personal 7-0 run that put Portland ahead to stay. He hit a jumper from the left baseline to give the Blazers a 49-47 lead with 6:09 left in the third quarter, then followed it with a 3-pointer and a thunderous right-handed jam.
Portland capitalized on Oklahoma City’s sloppy play early to build a 25-13 lead after LaMarcus Aldridge’s two-handed alley-oop and Travis Outlaw’s baseline jumper. Aldridge then limped off the floor with a bone bruise in his right knee and did not return.
Rookie James Harden hit back-to-back 3-pointers to help the Thunder claw back, and eventually take the lead midway through the second quarter.
NOTES: Portland was called for traveling four times in just over 3 minutes in the second quarter, including on three straight possessions. ... Trail Blazers coach Nate McMillan was whistled for a technical foul for arguing a call after Roy came up empty on a drive into traffic with 38 seconds left before halftime. ... Westbrook had four turnovers with no assists in the first 6 minutes. ... Attendance was 16,920, about 1,100 less than capacity in the renovated Ford Center.