Wissenswertes » sent off two minutes later following a second booking

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Kevin Durant said the mutual admiration between the Thunder and the Trail Blazers only goes so far. "We respect this team and they respect us, but we dont like them and they dont like us," Durant said after Oklahoma Citys hard-fought 98-95 victory over Portland on Tuesday night. "Point blank." Durant had 36 points and 10 rebounds as the Thunder evened the series against the Blazers 2-2 in their final regular-season meeting this year. Jeremy Lamb had 19 points, including a key 3-pointer with 1:38 left for the Western Conference-leading Thunder, who have won 14 of their last 16 games. Nicolas Batum had 18 points for slumping Portland, which has lost five of seven but still ranks third in the conference behind San Antonio. Robin Lopez finished with 17 points and 14 rebounds for his 19th double-double of the season. LaMarcus Aldridge, who missed a mid-range jumper in the final seconds that could have salvaged the win for Portland, was asked what he thought of Durants comment. "Were not trying to make friends out there," he said. "Were trying to win games." Portland led by as many as 13 points in the first half and held a 55-45 advantage at the break, but the Thunder kept chipping away and the teams went into the fourth quarter tied at 80. Derek Fisher hit a 3-pointer and Lamb made a layup to put the Thunder up 85-84. Portland reclaimed the lead on rookie CJ McCollums running shot, but Durant re-tied it at 91 with a long hook. The teams wrestled for the lead until Lambs 3-pointer gave the Thunder a 96-95 advantage. Damian Lillard missed a 3-pointer for Portland with 45.9 seconds left. Portland got the ball with 12.3 seconds left after officials reviewed an out-of-bounds call, but LaMarcus Aldridges mid-range jumper with 2 seconds left was off and Reggie Jackson hit free throws for the final margin. "We fought hard," Durant said. "Were a resilient team. Weve kept our heads up through adversity and tough times. Im proud of our team." Portland won two of the first three meetings between the two teams, but the Thunder won the last 105-97 in Oklahoma City last month. Durant paced the Thunder with 42 points in that one. Aldridge was a game-time decision because of soreness, but he started and finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds. The Blazers are the only team that has started the same five players in all of their games this season. Aldridge was disappointed with the loss -- and especially his final missed shot. "I couldnt throw a rock in a lake tonight," Aldridge said. Portland jumped out to a quick 18-6 lead, but the Blazers were hurt late in the opening quarter when reserve forward Joel Freelands right knee buckled underneath him and he had to be helped off the court. The extent of the injury was not immediately known, but the Blazers depend on the 6-foot-11 Brit to spell starting centre Lopez. The Thunder closed to 25-21 on Lambs 12-foot jumper early in the second quarter. Portland held them off, but Lambs dunk narrowed it to 34-32 and the Thunder finally pulled ahead 41-39 on Lambs 3-pointer. The Blazers answered with a 16-4 run to take a 55-45 lead into halftime. The Thunder again threatened when Kendrick Perkins jumper got them within 66-63. Serge Ibakas jumper with 2:18 left in the third finally gave Oklahoma City a 76-75 lead, their first of the second half. Jackson led the rally with 13 points after going 0-for-6 in the first half. The teams went into the fourth quarter tied at 80. "It was a physical game, but I like the fact that we kept competing and didnt let anything bother us," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "We just competed, possession by possession. And thats what good teams do." The Blazers were coming off a 2-2 road trip, including 117-110 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday. Following the loss to the Thunder, they were headed to Los Angeles for a game against the Clippers on Wednesday night before the All-Star break. The Thunder were coming off a 112-100 victory over the New York Knicks, with Durants 41 points leading the way. NOTES: Portland was without guard Mo Williams, who had just returned from attending to a family matter. It was hoped that Williams could travel with the team to face the Clippers on Wednesday night. ... Aldridge and Lillard were presented with their All-Star jerseys before the game. ... Thunder guard Thabo Sefolosha appeared to injure his right hand in the first half, but he returned to start the second half with his hand taped. ... Freeland was scheduled for an MRI on his knee. ... The Thunder had three technical in the game, and the Blazers had one. Wholesale Balenciaga Speed Trainer . Solomon Elimimian did not make the trip with the team after suffering what appeared to be a right leg injury in the teams regular season finale against the Calgary Stampeders. Vapormax 2019 Cheap . The 24-year-old Pruneau played his CIS football with the Montreal Carabins. The six-foot, 200-pound Montreal native had 41 tackles, 3. http://www.brandshoescheaponline.com/wholesale-nike-air-vapormax-china/vapormax-97-clearance-sale.html . While hell be dialed in to that tournament on a course he loves, you can forgive him if his eyes glance down the calendar just a bit, towards April. Brand Shoes Cheap Online . Minutes after the previously winless Colts got their first win, 27-13 over Tennessee, team vice chairman Bill Polian said the four-time league MVP will not play this season though he has begun throwing to teammates at the team complex. Yeezy Store China Website . -- The Washington Redskins coaching staff distanced itself from other coaches Thursday by siding with ownership -- and not the players -- in the NFLs labour dispute.MILAN, Italy -- Newly crowned champion Juventus beat Roma 1-0 Sunday with a last-minute goal and set a new points record for Serie A. Pablo Osvaldos stoppage-time winner against his former club ensured Juventus moved to 99 points, beating Inter Milans record. AC Milan lost 2-1 at Atalanta in a match blighted by racism. Atalanta fans threw bananas at Kevin Constant, who is black. They were sarcastically applauded by Milan players Philippe Mexes and Nigel De Jong. Antonio Contes team can become the first Serie A club to reach the 100-point mark when it plays Cagliari in the last round at Juventus Stadium, where it has won all 17 of its matches this season. "My players are celebrating so much because there is absolutely so much to celebrate," Conte said. "We are doing something incredible, we have the chance to secure another record. "Juventus is coming off a fantastic cycle of three years, it has done something historic and I am proud to be the coach of this squad ... This third title is extraordinary, now we want to reach 100 points. The squad is still alive, regardless of the celebrations and a few over-the-top evenings." Earlier, Torino was held 1-1 by Parma. Europa League qualification will now be decided on the final day of the season. Torino remained sixth, a point above Parma and two above Hellas Verona and Milan At Atalanta, fans were warned over the loudspeaker that further incidents would lead to the game being suspended. "I dont think theres much to say about the banana incident," Milan coach Clarence Seedorf said. "The lads immediately got over it all and continued to play football. Lets hope the appropriate bodies manage to find out who it was, to ban him from football forever." Catania beat Bologna 2-1, but both sides were relegated after Chievo Verona and Sassuolo won. Elsewhere, it was: Livorno 0, Fiorentina 1; and Sampdoria 2, Napoli 5. In Rome, it was a clash between the top two teams in the Italian league. Due to the fierce rivalry, the match was brought forward three hours. Vasilis Torosidis had a goal disallowed for Roma for handball, while at the other end Paul Pogbas angled drive crashed off the inside of the far post.dddddddddddd It appeared both teams would earn a deserved point from the match before Osvaldo -- who had been loudly booed by the Roma fans when he came off the bench -- was left unmarked to fire Stephan Lichtsteiners cross under the bar. Torino appeared to be on course to securing Europa League qualification after Ciro Immobile took advantage of a poor back pass from Gabriel Paletta to fire into an empty net at the end of the first half. Immobile has 22 goals this season, two more than Hellas Verona striker Luca Toni and three more than Juventus forward Carlos Tevez. Parma captain Alessandro Lucarelli was sent off for an elbow on Immobile shortly after the hour mark but the visitors levelled in the 71st minute when Afriyie Acquah was brought down by Kamil Glik. Antonio Cassano saw his penalty saved by Daniele Padelli but Torino was slow to react and Jonathan Biabiany netted the rebound. Immobile, who was booked earlier for his reaction to Lucarelli, was sent off two minutes later following a second booking for diving. In the lunchtime kickoff, Franco Brienza curled a stunning 30-meter effort into the top left corner in the sixth minute of added time to secure victory for Atalanta. Milan broke the deadlock early in the second half when Atalanta defender Gianpaolo Bellini turned Sulley Muntaris cross into his own net. Atalanta levelled from the spot in the 68th minute, with German Denis sending Marco Amelia the wrong way after Constant had fouled Carlos Carmona. Milan fought hard to win the match and Mario Balotelli -- who had hit the crossbar at the end of the first half -- saw an audacious effort from the outside edge of the penalty area crash off the far post. The only positive for Milan was the halftime introduction of forward Stephan El Shaarawy for his first appearance of 2014. Bologna and Catania will join bottom club Livorno in Serie B next season. Both teams are on 29 points, four behind Chievo, which snapped a three-match losing run to win 1-0 at Cagliari. Sassuolo is a point further ahead following a 4-2 victory over Genoa. There is one round remaining. ' ' '