Trail Blazers 102, Knicks 91
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Forward Nicolas Batum led the way as Portland jumped to a 17-point halftime lead and held on for a 102-91 victory over New York on Monday night at Moda Center.
Batum totaled 23 points, seven rebounds and six assists for the Trail Blazers (13-2), who led wire to wire in pulling out their 11th straight win.
Point guard Damian Lillard contributed 23 points and six assists, forward LaMarcus Aldridge had 18 points and 14 rebounds and guard Wesley Matthews added 17 points and six rebounds for Portland.
Forward Carmelo Anthony bombed in 34 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Knicks (3-10), who lost for the sixth straight time.
Batum scored 15 points and dished out five assists to stake Portland to a 17-point halftime edge.
The game was tied 12-12 when the Blazers went on a 12-0 run, the Knicks going four minutes without a point. It was 34-18 after one quarter, with Batum collecting 13 points, four assists and three rebounds.
By mid-second quarter, Portland had extended its advantage to 44-22. The Knicks used a 16-8 spurt to close to within 52-38 late in the period, but the Blazers went into intermission with a 56-39 lead.
New York, with Anthony going to work, crept back to within 71-61 with four minutes left in the third quarter. The margin was 81-69 entering the final period, Anthony almost single-handedly keeping the Knicks alive with 25 points and 11 rebounds to that point.
Forward Andrea Bargnani's 3-pointer cut Portland's lead to 81-74 with 10:09 remaining, but the Blazers responded with the next nine points to seize a 90-74 advantage. New York rallied again, getting to within 94-85 with 4:40 to play.
Anthony's three-point play with 1:47 left cut the difference to 98-91. Back-to-back baskets by Lillard finally put the win on ice for the Blazers.
NOTES: Portland was without sixth man G Mo Williams, serving a one-game suspension for his involvement in a fracas during a 113-101 win at Golden State on Saturday night. F LaMarcus Aldridge was fined $45,000 and G Wesley Matthews $20,000 for their involvement. ... New York was minus injured starters G Raymond Felton (hip) and C Tyson Chandler (leg). Felton said he expects to be back against the Clippers on Wednesday at Staples Center. Chandler isn't likely to return until Christmas. ... Aldridge was named Monday as Western Conference Player of the Week, averaging 22.5 points and 10.5 rebounds as Portland went 4-0 last week. "He had a terrific week and polished it off with a monster game in the Golden State win," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "It was very deserving." ... New York coach Mike Woodson and Stotts were teammates on the 1976 Indiana team that played Kentucky in the annual high school series. "I was at Bloomington High North, he was at Broad Ripple High (in Indianapolis)," Stotts said. "He was the star; I played a minute." Said Woodson: "Terry was a good player. Any time you make the Indiana All-Star team, you have to be pretty good. Our team was loaded with a lot of talent, but we weren't expected to win the series against Kentucky, with Darrell Griffith and that group. But we won both games."
