Blazers turn back Grizzlies

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02/19/2009 - Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Roy had a game-high 24 points and nine assists, as the Portland Trail Blazers hung on to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies, 94-90, at the Rose Garden.

LaMarcus Aldridge added 15 points and six rebounds for the Blazers, who started a three-game homestand. Nicolas Batum ended with 11 points. Joel Przybilla pulled down a game-high 15 boards.

The Blazers were without emerging center Greg Oden, who sat out because of a bone chip in his left knee. He suffered the injury against the Warriors on February 12. Oden was unable to play in the All-Star weekend's rookie challenge because of the injury and is currently listed as day-to-day.

"This was a tough game. It's not surprising though. Often, when there are a number of days off it's sometimes as disadvantage," said Portland coach Nate McMillan. "We were fortunate to play really well in parts of the first half. But in the second half, a second wind never came for us."

Memphis was paced by Rudy Gay, who ended with 20 points and five rebounds. O.J. Mayo chipped in 19 points for the Grizzlies, who finished a three-game road trip with a 0-3 record. Mike Conley finished with 15 points and 10 helpers.

Rudy Fernandez drilled a three-pointer with 8:15 remaining to extend Portland's lead to 82-76. But Memphis responded with a 10-2 run to take its first lead since early in the first quarter. Gay made 1-of-2 from the stripe to cap the flurry with 4:50 to go.

With the score knotted at 86, Darius Miles was charged with a technical foul. Roy converted on the technical free throw to put the home team up by one. Travis Outlaw connected on a three-pointer from the corner to make it a 90-86 game with 2:31 left.

Trailing 92-88, Memphis brought the ball down the court with 15.2 seconds to go. Mayo made a one-handed driving layup with 5.4 ticks left to cut the gap to 92-90, but it was too late. Roy made 2-of-2 from the stripe on the ensuing Blazers possession to put the home team ahead by four with 3.9 seconds remaining. On the final possession, Mayo missed a jumper as time ran out.

"We turned the ball over -- we didn't pass it to our team and we didn't stop at the free throw line and we ran over people and made charges and just didn't execute," said Memphis coach Lionel Hollins. "They just got out and ran. It looked like a track meet in the first quarter. I told our guys that it was a lesson in how hard you have to play and how the good teams play. That's the intensity that you have to bring every night, every day. I was proud of the fact that they caught on to the lesson because we started playing harder and we caught up to them and it was a game."

The majority of the first quarter was a back-and-forth battle. The Blazers opened a six-point lead, the largest of the frame, on a Batum slam with 3:38 left. Portland held onto a slim margin for the rest of the stanza and took a 30-27 advantage into the second quarter.

After Hakim Warrick made a layup to start the second period, the Blazers scored 10 unanswered points to extend their lead to 40-29. Sergio Rodriguez drilled a shot from beyond the arc to culminate the spurt with 8:12 remaining.

Aldridge made a pair of foul shots to give Portland a 54-40 cushion with just over three minutes until half. But Memphis responded with a 13-3 spurt to close out the half. Mayo hit a three-pointer with a few ticks remaining to culminate the run and cut the gap to 57-53 heading into the locker room.

Mayo and Roy tallied 13 points apiece at the break to lead their respective teams.

Down 60-55 early in the third period, The Grizzlies scored five straight points to tie the game. After Marc Gasol made a short jumper, Conley capped off the spurt with a shot from beyond the arc.

The Blazers didn't let this small run bother them, as they responded with six unanswered points. Batum culminated the spurt with a jumper with about 8 1/2 minutes left. The Blazers maintained a small advantage for the rest of the frame and took a 75-72 edge into the final quarter.

This game also marked the return of Darius Miles to the Rose Garden. Miles was waived by the Blazers at the end of last season, and then a doctor determined that Miles' knee injury was career-ending. However, Miles came back and played for Boston in the preseason before joining Memphis, and after playing a total of 10 games, the Blazers were hit with a salary-cap hit of $18 million. He finished with six points and five rebounds in Wednesday's game.

Earlier in the day, Portland was involved in a three-team trade with Sacramento and Chicago. The Kings traded center Brad Miller and swingman John Salmons to the Bulls in exchange for forwards Andres Nocioni, Cedric Simmons and Michael Ruffin, and center Drew Gooden.

The Kings then turned around and sent Ruffin to Portland in exchange for forward Ike Diogu. The Blazers also gained a $3 million trade exception, which they can use for one calendar year.

Game Notes

The Blazers shot 15-of-18 from the foul line, while the Grizzlies went 12-of-20 from the stripe...This was the first meeting between the teams this season...Portland won all three meetings last season...Memphis dropped to 3-21 on the road this season...Blazers' starting point guard Steve Blake, who had missed 13 of the last 14 games with a separated right shoulder, returned to the lineup. He finished with seven points.

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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