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PORTLAND, Ore. -- The Trail Blazers who got off to such a strong start this season re-emerged against Washington Wizards. "The ball was moving. It was a lot of fun to be out there," Wesley Matthews said. "Thats how we play. Thats how we got on a roll, thats how we got to be one of the hottest teams." Matthews matched his season high with 28 points, including four 3-pointers, and the Portland defeated the Wizards 116-103 on Thursday night. Damian Lillard added 23 points and 10 assists for the Blazers, who are still playing without injured All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge. Portland (45-24) remained in fifth place in the Western Conference with three victories in their last four games after slumping with a four-game losing streak. The Wizards (35-33) have lost two straight to open four-game swing against the Western Conference while they vie for a playoff spot in the East to end a five-year absence. Washington currently sits sixth in their conference. John Wall had 24 points and 14 assists for Washington, which trailed by as many as 17 points in the second half. "They are a team that gets hot from time to time," Wall said. "And they got hot and made some contested shots, they rotated the ball and guys knocked down their shots." Portland played small in Aldridges absence and finished with 32 assists on 41 field goals. " I think right now were just moving the ball really well," Lillard said. "And when youre moving the ball, you put yourself in position to make shots." Wizards centre Marcin Gortat was scratched from the lineup just before the game because of a lower back strain. It was the first game hes missed this season. Gortat, who hurt his back during pregame warmups and left the court wincing, is averaging 12.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. In Washingtons 117-111 overtime loss at Sacramento on Tuesday, Gortat had 19 points and 14 rebounds. The Wizards started Kevin Seraphin in his place. The Wizards are still without forward Nene, who missed his 12th gram because of a sprained left MCL. "Things arent going our way right now," Wall said. "Some guys are down, but there are no excuses. We know we should be 1-1 on this trip right now. Two more games left to put this one behind us. Win the next two, go home even." The Blazers, who opened the season 22-4 and rose to the top of the standings, played without Aldridge for the fourth straight game because of a lower back contusion. He is expected to return when the Blazers play at Charlotte on Saturday. They got a scare against the Wizards when reserve guard Will Barton, who has been a spark off the bench this season, appeared to injure his right arm and left the game for a time. In the second half he wore a brace on his elbow. The Blazers jumped out to a 19-14 lead, but the Wizards answered with a 14-4 run to lead 28-23 after the first quarter. Bradley Beals layup extended the lead to 35-27. The Wizards stayed in front, going up 45-39 on former Blazer Martell Websters dunk. But Lillard dunked with less than a minute to go in the half and Robin Lopez added a layup to tie the game at 51. Lillard added a pair of free throws for a 53-51 Blazers lead at the break. Portland opened the third quarter with an 11-3 run, including 3-pointers from Lillard, Dorell Wright and Matthews, to stretch the lead to 64-53. The Blazers had six 3s in the quarter to head into the final period with an 86-73 lead. Bartons pass between the legs of Drew Gooden was snagged by Thomas Robinson for the jam to make it 89-73. Wright, who has been starting in Aldridges absence, matched his season-high with 15 points. Gooden had 18 points and nine rebounds off the bench for Washington. NOTES: The Blazers on Thursday announced a $16 million makeover of the Moda Center, including renovation of the arenas suites and a new glass enclosed bar on the upper level that will offer a panoramic view of Portland. The Blazers are also holding a fan contest to redesign the teams court. ... The Blazers have had four straight games with at least 12 3-pointers, a franchise record. ... The loss snaps a three-game winning streak for the Wizards in the series with Portland. Vans Shoes Clearance . The 33-year-old Spaniard, who held the lead since the second round, turned in a solid final round that featured six birdies and two bogeys to finish on 22-under 266. The victory is Garcias first this year with his last win coming at the Johor Open, an Asian Tour event in Malaysia last December. Cheap Vans Shoes Wholesale . Torres calmly stroked a 51st-minute spot kick down the middle with goalkeeper Romel Quinonez diving right to convert a penalty earned by Javi Martinez. Spain controlled play at the Sanchez Pizjuan but found it hard to convert against a well-organized Bolivian team before Iniesta charged forward to curl around Quinonez in the 84th to seal victory. http://www.cheapvanssale.com/ . Auld made 37 saves in a 5-3 loss to the Boston Bruins on Saturday. It was Ottawas first game without starter Anderson, who is out indefinitely after cutting his hand Wednesday night, and it was evident the team wasnt sure how to deal with the change in goal. Cheap Vans Shoes For Sale . Chelsea took until the second half to trouble the leagues bottom team, but Schuerrle then ripped through the defence with ease at Craven Cottage to keep Jose Mourinhos side on track for the title. Vans Shoes Cheap Online . -- Kenneth Faried made a turnaround hook shot over Draymond Green with a half-second remaining, and the Denver Nuggets made Golden State wait at least one more game to secure a playoff berth with a stunning 100-99 win over the Warriors on Thursday night.MINNEAPOLIS -- Mike Yeos three-year run in Minnesota has been anything but easy. The Wild coach has had to navigate key injuries to his roster, his own growing pains in his first NHL head coaching job and the considerable expectations brought forth when the teams owner spent nearly $200 million on two players two summers ago. The Wild have improved under Yeo in each season, and Yeo has improved himself enough to earn the faith of the Wild leadership going forward. Yeo signed a multi-year contract extension with the Wild on Saturday, the team announced. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the agreement was expected after Yeo guided the team out of the first round of the playoffs for just the second time in franchise history in the final year of his original deal. He has gone 104-82-26 in three seasons with the Wild. "Mike has done a very good job the last three seasons as our head coach and we look forward to his leadership going forward," Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher said. Yeo was an unproven coach with no NHL head coaching track record to go by when Fletcher picked him to take over for Todd Richards three seasons ago. The Wild faded after a strong start to Yeos first season and never found a rhythm in his second year, an abbreviated 48-game schedule due to the lockout. The Wild did snap a five-season playoff drought in his second season, but were dominated by Chicago in a first-round deffeat.dddddddddddd His status was tenuous at best by New Years Eve last season, when the Wild lost their sixth straight game and Yeo felt compelled at the next practice to tell the players he wouldnt coach simply to save his job. But despite foot injuries that kept stars Zach Parise and Mikko Koivu and key defenceman Jared Spurgeon out for long stretches of the winter, Yeo helped hold the group together while the wins picked up. The Wild played all season with a carousel in the net, too, with four different goalies starting 10 games each or more. "There were times where the wheels couldve come off, and he kept it together," said defenceman Ryan Suter, one of several players to endorse Yeo after the season-ending loss to Chicago. The Wild solidified his status in the playoffs with a seven-game victory over Colorado in the first round when the Avalanche led 2-0 and 3-2 in the series. They gave the Blackhawks a fight, too, until falling in six games. The late-season surge, and Yeos impressive strategic decisions both rounds of the playoffs, gave Fletcher the faith that he had the right man for the job. "I am very excited to continue to coach the Minnesota Wild and pursue a Stanley Cup for the State of Hockey," Yeo said. "Our fan support has been amazing and it went to a new level during the playoffs this season. We are all motivated to reward them." 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