CHICAGO -- The Portland Trail Blazers had dropped three straight games and appeared in danger of losing considerable playoff ground in the tough Western Conference before LaMarcus Aldridge returned to the lineup on Thursday. Two games later, the Blazers seemed to have turned things following a pair of comfortable wins, the latest a 91-74 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Friday night. Is the turnaround as easily explained as the return of an All-Star performer? Well, yeah, the Blazers say. "Other than us getting our best player back, which changes everything, I think our urgency is going up," Damian Lillard said. "After the loss at Orlando (on Tuesday), we realized, All right, its time to turn it around now. We cant wait and we cant have all of these lackadaisical efforts. "Everybodys got on the same page and, during these last two games, weve really defended and done everything together." Mo Williams scored 18 points to lead five Blazers in double figures. Lillard had 16 points, Nicolas Batum and Robin Lopez each had 13, Wesley Matthews had 11 and Thomas Robinson added 10. The Blazers got past the Bulls easily, despite a quiet night from Aldridge, who was playing just his second game after missing two weeks with a back injury. He had five points and 13 rebounds in 29 minutes after having 25 points and 16 rebounds in Atlanta. "His presence on the court puts pressure on everyone," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "He does a lot more to help us win than just his field-goal percentage." No one in the Bulls locker room would disagree. "He is a load down there; a great player," Joakim Noah said. "You can tell when he is on the court, whether he scores or not. He changes their team. He is one of the best in the game." Carlos Boozer had 16 points and 12 rebounds in 24 minutes to lead Chicago. D.J. Augustin had 15, Taj Gibson 13 and Noah added 11 points and 10 rebounds. The Bulls, who had a chance to clinch a playoff spot with a win on their own, lost both games of the season series and have dropped 11 of 13 overall against Portland, including five of seven at the United Center. With the New York Knicks loss to the Phoenix Suns, the Bulls still managed to wrap up a playoff spot. Before Friday, the Bulls had been 10-3 in their last 13 home games, averaging 96.8 points on 44.5 per cent shooting during that span. But it was apparent early that they wouldnt approach either of those marks in this one. "We were flat," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "They had something to do with that." Getting off to fast starts was one reason behind the Bulls recent home success, but they were cold at the start, going 8-of-23 (34.8 per cent) from the field in scoring 16 points in the first quarter. Minus Boozers 10 points on 5-of-10 shooting, the rest of the team managed just six points on 3-of-13 shooting. The Blazers had a 47-36 halftime lead and then took charge at the start of the third quarter, beginning the second half with a dunk by Lopez and a 3-pointer by Batum to make it 52-36. In all, Portland stretched the run to 15-2 for a 62-38 lead. The Bulls ended the third quarter on a mini-spurt -- including a three-point play on a dunk and foul by Gibson -- to trim the deficit to 73-58 entering the fourth quarter. The Bulls got the ball first in the final quarter and had a couple of inside looks on that initial possession, but came up empty. Lillard then essentially dashed any hopes of a huge rally with a 3-pointer at the other end to make it 76-58. The Bulls failed to score 80 points for the 11th time this season and are 0-11 in those games. "Our defence tonight was just an example of everybody being there for each other," Lopez said. "When you know there is someone behind you, it gives you the confidence to be aggressive." NOTES: Bulls G Derrick Rose, out for the season with a torn right meniscus, suffered the injury in the first game against the Blazers on Nov. 22 and had surgery three days later. ... Thibodeau was asked if he was taking part in the Bulls NCAA pool. "I didnt get a chance to participate," the coach said. "I was looking at that Quicken Loans one. I think I would have won that." That was the contest in which Warren Buffett offered $1 billion to anyone who could fill out a perfect bracket. No one made it through the third day without at least one game wrong. ... Portland entered with a 20-18 road record but was 2-7 in last nine. Mason Raymond Ducks Jersey . LOUIS -- The St. Julius Nattinen Ducks Jersey Authentic . Durant finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds, Jackson matched his career high with 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting and Lamb scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, lifting the Thunder to a 94-88 win over San Antonio and snapping the Spurs 11-game winning streak. http://www.hockeyducksauthority.com/jako...ks-jersey-c-23/. The Sochi organizing committee said in Fridays statement that the torch relay reached the North Pole on Oct. 19. Russian Polar explorer Artur Chilingarov, who led the mission, lit a special bowl at the North Pole sign. Jakob Silfverberg Ducks Jersey Authentic . Zimmermann became the National Leagues first 16-game winner, pitching seven solid innings to lead the Washington Nationals past the Philadelphia Phillies 3-2 Wednesday night. Ryan Getzlaf Ducks Jersey Authentic . Johns, N.L., to Thunder Bay, Ont., after a deal was announced to build a new $106-million "event centre" in the Lake Superior community.(SportsNetwork.com) - Zack Greinke aims to become just baseballs second nine-game winner this season as the Los Angeles Dodgers wrap a four-game series on Sunday afternoon with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Tune in to all the action live on TSN2 beginning at 8pm et/5pm pt. Greinke carried a Major League-record string of 22 straight starts without allowing more than two earned runs into his last outing on Tuesday against the Cincinnati Reds. Though that streak was halted, Greinke still won his third decision in a row thanks to a positive 6-3 outcome. The right-hander was charged with three runs on eight hits over 7 2/3 innings, matching a season high with 11 strikeouts while not issuing a walk. It marked the first time Greinke allowed more than two earned runs in a start since July 25, but he still improved to 8-1 with a 2.18 earned run average. He is tied with St. Louis Adam Wainwright for the most victories in the NL this season and one back of Torontos Mark Buehrle for the most in baseball. Greinke, 30, is 5-2 with a 5.29 ERA lifetime against the Pirates, who counter with Edinson Volquez. Volquez is 2-3 with a 2.86 ERA in seven previous meetings with the Dodgers and spent a brief stint with the club last season. Acquired from the San Diego Padres midseason, the righty went 0-2 with a 4.18 ERA in six games (5 starts) with Los Angeles. Volquez picked up his second win of the season with a solid outing on May 22 versus Washington, but struggled with his command on Tuesday aagainst the New York Mets in a no-decision.dddddddddddd. The 30-year-old yielded four hits and a walked a season-high five batters over five innings, but did limit the damage to just two runs. "It was a challenge for (Volquez) but he kept us in the game," Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said of his starter. Volquez is 2-4 on the year with a 4.30 ERA and will try to cool off the Dodgers bats. Los Angeles saw its offense erupt on Saturday for a 12-2 win, thanks in large part to Hanley Ramirez. He went 4-for-4 at the plate and hit a pair of homers while matching career highs with five RBI and four runs scored. "Hanley has found something and I hope it continues. Everything fell our way today," said Dodgers manager Don Mattingly. Matt Kemp, Justin Turner and Drew Butera each drove in two runs for the Dodgers, who snapped a three-game losing skid. After flirting with a no-hitter in his last start, Hyun-Jin Ryu yielded two runs on 10 hits over six solid innings to earn the win. In the worst outing of his young career, Brandon Cumpton was tagged for 11 runs -- 10 earned -- on 11 hits and two walks over just 3 2/3 innings. "His (Cumpton) fastball command wasnt what weve seen from him in the past. It was a bad day for him," said Hurdle. Jose Tabata collected three hits and Jordy Mercer had an RBI for Pittsburgh, which had snapped a nine-game slide in Los Angeles by winning the first two games of this series. White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '