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A disappointing home loss this week damaged the Portland Trail Blazers' hopes of winning the Northwest Division, but the young Blazers have already begun to reestablish their dominance at the Rose Garden.


They don't figure to have much problem earning a win Saturday night against the visiting Memphis Grizzlies, who are still seeking their first road victory of the season over a winning team.

Portland (45-27) trails Denver by just 1 1/2 games in the Northwest, with Utah also involved in the tight race. The three teams are among several jockeying for playoff positioning in the Western Conference, and a total of five teams have either 26 or 27 losses with less than three weeks left in the regular season.

The Blazers' situation could have been better if they hadn't opened a four-game homestand with Monday night's 114-108 overtime loss to Philadelphia, but they bounced back with a season-high point total in a 129-109 win over Phoenix on Thursday night.

They're now 29-7 at home, with 14 wins in their last 16 home games.

Led by 29 points and 12 rebounds from LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland shot better than 60 percent from the field -- also a season best -- against the defenseless Suns.

Aldridge now has six double-doubles in his last 10 games, and he appears to have fully recovered from a concussion that sidelined him for one game last week.

"He's still learning to take advantage of what he can do, and I think he can be a dominant force on both ends of the floor," Portland coach Nate McMillan said of Aldridge.

Aldridge led the Blazers with 22 points in a 103-92 win at Memphis on March 16, their fifth straight victory over the Grizzlies. They swept three games in last season's series, and need wins Saturday and April 7 to go 4-0 in 2008-09.

The Grizzlies (18-53) have lost 17 of their last 20 games, but they're coming off a 113-95 win at lowly Sacramento on Friday night as they helped decrease their chances of finishing with the NBA's worst record.

In the midst of a dismal season, Memphis improved to 6-29 on the road. None of the six wins have come against teams that are currently over .500.

But with 27 points, Marc Gasol helped awaken what has been a brutal Memphis offense. The Grizzlies had averaged 88.6 points and shot 43.1 percent from the field in their previous nine games.

"It was nice to get a 15-20 point lead and be able to relax a little instead of being behind and trying to catch up," Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said.

Rudy Gay added 23 points and Mike Conley had 20 to go with six rebounds and five assists for the Grizzlies.

Conley will face his friend Greg Oden for the first time as a professional Saturday after the duo teamed up for three state championships at Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis, then led Ohio State to the NCAA title game in their only season in Columbus.

Oden, who sat out all of last season following a knee injury, has missed both of Portland's games against Memphis this season due to problems with the other knee. The former No. 1 overall pick has fallen from the starting lineup and has continued to struggle with foul trouble in five games since his return. ESPN.COM

The Grizz will have to do a better job defending against the likes of Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge if they wish to keep their chances of winning two in a row on their side. I think that since we play Portland twice before it's said and done, there's a 50/50 chance that the Grizz might win one of those game. They do match up with them somewhat. They need to bring more intensity to the defensive end to do some damage to the Blazers offense.

Grizz go down 86-66 in Portland tonight. Roy and Aldridge combined for 39pts and 15rebs in the win for the Blazers. OJ Mayo scored 12pts and 5 dimes. Rudy Gay and Marc Gasol scored 10pts respectively and Mike Conley had 6rebs in the loss for the Grizzlies.

http://www.nba.com/games/20090328/MEMPOR/gameinfo.html

what a game by Haddadi this guy seriously needs to get more minutes and some one should seriously teach him to stop fouling. That is the only problem he has. Haddadi should get more minutes. In this game he had 7 points, 6 rebounds and 1 assist in 12 minutes.

He appears to be the perfect backup to Gasol. If he can continue to improve, we could be set at the C position for the next 5 years.

I think Haddadi will get much more time next season. I have a tough time believing we start next season with Darko. He got what he needed this season. A taste of what the players are like in this league so he can improve on certain things from a physical aspect and time to adjust to the culture. I did not want to see him rushed because the potential was there, but the there were a lot of factors that could have messed him up if he were thrown into the fire. I know Haddadi might feel disappointed, but I think in the long run this will be better for his career in the NBA.