Easily the tightest and arguably the most exciting game of the year, Thursday’s game between the Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers at the Rose Garden did not disappoint any of the 20,611 in attendance.  Rudy Gay went from a zero – from a mistake he made earlier in the game – to a hero, as he drained a jumper with no time remaining, boosting Portland to a thrilling 101-99 win over Houston.

Portland’s Rudy Fernandez scored five straight points in the fourth quarter, giving the Trail Blazers a 81-71 lead; but Rockets forward Ron Artest hit a 3-pointer at the 7:02 mark of regulation to cut the Trail Blazer lead to 84-83.  The Rockets and Trail Blazers each had an opportunity to win the game; Roy drove to the basket with 10.1 seconds left but Artest got in front of him, causing him to turn the ball over.  McGrady attempted to convert an alley-oop basket – which was unsuccessful – sending the game into overtime.

In the extra period, Roy hit a turnaround jumper that put Portland up 98-96; however, the Rockets’ Yao Ming scored and drew a foul – of which he hit the free throw – with 0.8 seconds left in OT.  The Trail Blazers called a timeout, then the Trail Blazers’ Steve Blake inbounded the ball to Roy who immediately shot the ball from 30 feet- which hit nothing but net as the buzzer sounded.

LaMarcus Aldridge led all Trail Blazers scorers with 27 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 blocked shots while the aforementioned Roy added 17 with 7 rebounds, 5 assists, a steal but 5 turnovers; Fernandez chipped in 15 (including 3 treys) with a rebound and 2 assists while Travis Outlaw recorded a double-double, scoring 14 with 13 rebounds, an assist, a steal and 2 blocked shots.

Houston was led by Tracy McGrady with 30 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals and a blocked shot while Luis Scola and Aaron Brooks scored 14 each – with Scola grabbing 4 rebounds and a steal while Brooks grabbing 2 rebounds and dishing out 2 assists.  Portland (2-3) plays again on Saturday when they host the Minnesota Timberwolves while Houston (3-2) makes the short flight south to Los Angeles to take on the Clippers on Friday night.