Portland, OR – Nicolas Batum filled the stat sheet with 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds as the Portland Trail Blazers held off the Philadelphia 76ers, 89-85, at the Rose Garden.
Damian Lillard followed with 20 points, while J.J. Hickson contributed a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds for Portland, which won for the seventh time in nine games.
LaMarcus Aldridge added 16 points, five boards and four assists in the victory.
"We've had bounce-back wins all season, so I thought this was a really good game for us to bounce back tonight," Aldridge remarked.
Jrue Holiday scored a game-high 29 points to go along with nine assists, but also recorded seven of the Sixers' 13 turnovers.
Thaddeus Young poured in 17 points, while Nick Young and Spencer Hawes each scored 10 in Philadelphia's eighth loss in its last nine road games.
Portland held a 49-44 lead entering the third quarter and the teams traded baskets in the frame before a Holiday 3-pointer sparked a 9-0 run that put the Sixers on top, 59-56.
The Sixers maintained a one-possession lead from there until a Batum triple was followed by a Hickson layup to give the Trail Blazers a 65-63 edge.
Portland carried a 70-67 advantage into the fourth quarter and opened the frame with seven straight points to jump ahead by double digits, but after a Lillard 3-pointer put the Trail Blazers ahead, 80-69, Philadelphia reeled off a 7-0 push to close its gap to four.
Hickson put home an alley-oop dunk and then connected on a jumper to halt the run before Thaddeus Young later netted five straight points to pull the Sixers back within 86-83 with 1:09 remaining.
Hawes then had a chance to tie the game with an open look from the right corner following a missed Batum 3-pointer, but the shot rimmed out and Batum sank a pair of shots at the foul line with 21.6 seconds left to all but seal the game for Portland.
"One of these nights we have to have a game where we're the team that jumps out early and survives a couple runs," Hawes said. "It takes a lot more energy to be on the bottom side of a run trying to come back than it does just to kind of withhold it."
Philadelphia followed Aldridge's opening jumper with seven straight points to take an early lead before Portland responded with an 11-0 spurt to go on top, 13-7.
A 6-2 push brought the Sixers back within 15-13, but consecutive layups by Aldridge and Victor Claver gave the Trail Blazers back some cushion and they carried a 30-23 advantage into the second quarter.
After Portland took a 36-27 lead early in the second when Price went 1-for-2 from the foul line, Nick Young capped a 7-0 run by the Sixers with a shot from beyond the arc to bring Philadelphia back within 36-34.
The Trail Blazers, however, responded with an 8-2 push to regain an eight- point edge.
Philadelphia would get back within 47-44 late in the frame before an Aldridge jumper gave Portland a 49-44 lead at the break.
Game Notes
Portland has won four of the last five meetings between the teams ... The Trail Blazers connected on 44.7 percent of its shots, while Philadelphia shot 42.4 percent from the floor ... The Sixers held a 45-39 advantage on the glass and a 42-32 edge in points in the paint.
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