Adi double maintains Portland's playoff push

(Reuters) - Nigerian striker Fanendo Adi scored twice to keep the Portland Timbers on track for a playoff spot with a 2-1 win at the Columbus Crew on Saturday. The win halted a four-game winless slide for the sixth-place Timbers (12-10-8) and maintained their three point advantage over the Houston Dynamo (11-12-8) in the battle for the final playoff spot in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference. Houston, who only have three regular season games remaining compared to Portland’s four, kept pace with a 3-2 win at home to the Colorado Rapids. In Columbus, the Timbers opened the scoring in the 28th minute when midfielder Darlington Nagbe slipped the ball through for Adi to finish but Kei Kamara's league-leading 22nd goal, a near post header just before halftime, had the Crew level. Adi, though, restored the Timbers advantage in the 50th minute, poking home a left wing cross from Rodney Wallace. In Toronto, Sebastian Giovinco set a MLS record for combined goals and assists in a season with two set-ups in Toronto FC’s 3-2 win over the Chicago Fire. Giovinco's 35 total (19 goals, 16 assists) surpassed the record of 34 (27 goals, seven assists), set by San Jose Earthquakes forward Chris Wondolowski in 2012. In Montreal, former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba scored twice to make it seven goals in six MLS games to push the Montreal Impact to a 2-0 win over DC United. The Impact remains in the sixth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, four points ahead of Orlando City. New York City FC kept up their slim hopes of catching the Impact after David Villa scored a last minute penalty to give them a 2-1 win at the Vancouver Whitecaps. Drogba's former Chelsea team mate Frank Lampard had earlier put City in front but Chilean Pedro Morales levelled for the hosts in the 88th minute before Villa ensured a third straight win. (Reporting by Tim Wharnsby. Editing by Patrick Johnston)