DENVER -- The Trail Blazers took Denvers best shot -- and the Nuggets took way too many errant shots thanks to Portlands stifling defence. Custom Chicago Blackhawks Jersey . Damian Lillard made up for the absence of fellow All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge by scoring 31 points in the Trail Blazers 100-95 win over the Nuggets on Tuesday night, including a pair of free throws and a layup in the closing minutes to help hold off Denvers fourth-quarter rally. "It was a difficult game," Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. "We did a lot of good things, made some big plays defensively to win it at the end. The offence kind of shut down in the fourth quarter but our defence stayed solid, and to get a win like this in Denver is something we needed to do." The Nuggets trimmed an 18-point deficit to two but couldnt catch the Blazers. Denver made just 37 of 103 shots, including 27 of 64 in the paint, and couldnt even find the rim at the line, missing 9 of 26 free throws. Lillard scored 12 points in the third quarter when it looked as if to the Blazers were headed for a blowout win, but he saved his biggest shots for late in the fourth. Lillards clutch shooting helped Portland overcome a terrific performance by Denvers J.J. Hickson, who pulled down a career-high 25 rebounds, including 15 on the offensive side. Hickson led the Nuggets to a 64-41 advantage on the glass, appearing as a reserve power forward after starting 52 games at centre this season. "Twenty-five boards is exciting, but the win would have been more exciting," Hickson said. The Blazers again went with a smaller lineup with Aldridge missing his fourth straight game with a strained left groin, and Dorell Wright helped make up for Aldridges team-high 23.9 points and 11.4 rebounds by giving Denver another long-range shooter to defend. As Nuggets coach Brian Shaw said before tip-off when talking about Aldridges absence, "Theres a big sigh of relief that you dont have to deal with that, but at the same time it just creates a different type of problem: Theyre one of the best -- if not the best -- 3-point shooting teams in the league. Theyre the best free-throw shooting team in the league. Theyre the highest-scoring team in the league." Six Blazers scored in double figures, including Nicolas Batums 16 points. Aldridge averaged 34.5 points in the Blazers two earlier games against Denver this season and the Trail Blazers missed him in the fourth quarter when it was tougher to close this one out than they had expected when they surged to a 79-61 lead in the third. Randy Foye led Denver with 17 points. Denver again was without Ty Lawson, who leads the Nuggets with averages of 18 points and 8.8 assists. Hes missed seven straight games with a broken rib. Shaw also made a big change with his big man, starting 7-foot-1 Timofey Mozgov at centre in place of Hickson, a natural power forward pressed into duty at centre after JaVale McGee fractured his left tibia five games into the season. Hickson filled in admirably, averaging 11.4 points and 9.2 boards, but he shot just 52 per cent from the free-throw line, and Shaw said that "affected his confidence rolling to the basket aggressively and running the floor because maybe he doesnt want to get fouled." Mozgov, who was averaging 8.6 points and 5.8 rebounds, finished with 14 points and six boards. Hickson scored 16 points. Hickson said he was much more comfortable going back to power forward. "It just felt good to play my natural position," he said. He didnt seem bothered coming off the bench, either. "I dont know how many minutes I played, but I definitely played starters minutes tonight," said Hickson, who played just under 30 minutes. "So, coming off the bench or starting, people always tell me its not who starts, its who finishes and tonight, coach made the call to let me finish and that shows he has a lot of confidence in me still." Evan Fourniers pair of free throws with just over four minutes remaining capped a 15-2 run that pulled Denver to 86-84. Lillard ended the drought with a pair of free throws. After back-to-back buckets by Denvers Kenneth Faried, Lillard hit a finger-roll layup for a 92-88 lead, and the Nuggets never got any closer. "When youre in a situation like that, youve just got to find a way to get it done," Lillard said. NOTES: Blazers F Thomas Robinson played just 14 minutes and had a wrap on his left knee after the game. Stotts said he had no information on the injury. Custom Carolina Hurricanes Jersey . Gregor Blanco doubled, singled and drove in three runs, and the surging San Francisco Giants beat the New York Mets 6-4 on Sunday for their fifth straight win. "Theres nothing I can complain about," manager Bruce Bochy said. The Giants completed their fourth sweep of the season. Montreal Canadiens Jersey . Mata had already been dropped from Spains squad once this season and with the country blessed with so many playmakers, he was in real danger of being overlooked for the trip to Brazil to defend their title. MOSCOW -- Canadas Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje produced a career-best score to capture a silver medal in ice dancing at the Rostelecom Cup Grand Prix. World champions Meryl Davis and Charlie White of the U.S. remain undefeated in eight career Grand Prix appearances, winning the gold Saturday with 179.06 points. Weaver and Poje collected their third silver this season with a score of 161.18, topping their previous best of 160.32 they set in finishing fifth at the world championships last year. "It was probably our most physically challenging competition because it was already our third event this season," said Weaver. "We put every ounce of energy we had in every movement." The Canadians will compete at the Grand Prix Final, Dec. 8-11 in Quebec City. "This is just great for our confidence," Poje said. "We are growing through every competition and it should really help us for the Grand Prix Final and the other competitions coming up in the second half of the season." Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev of Russia took the bronze at 156.83 Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan won the mens gold while Javier Fernandez of Spain claimed silver and Amerrican Jeremy Abbott finished third. Los Angeles Kings Jersey. World junior champion Andrei Rogozine of Richmond Hill, Ont., fell on his triple Axel but still scored a personal-best 197.85 points to finish sixth, moving up a spot from his seventh-place finish in the short program. "Right now I need to gain some confidence with the triple Axel," said Rogozine. "But I was pleased with the score and to move up a spot in the standings." Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany won the pairs while 15-year-old Brittany Jones of Toronto and Kurtis Gaskell of Guelph, Ont., were seventh in their international debut. "We had some troubles here and there especially with our jumps," said Jones. "It was a very strong field but we tried to stay focused on our own performance and not worry about the standings." Mao Asada of Japan edged Alena Leonova of Russia to win the womens singles. Amelie Lacoste of Delson, Que., moved up a spot from the short program to finish eighth. "It was a better performance than at Skate Canada," said Lacoste. "Im feeling Im improving more and more as we head towards the Canadian championships." cheap jerseys from chinacheap jerseys ' ' '
