The Portland Trail Blazers will try to win a playoff series for the first time since 2000 on Wednesday night when they visit the Houston Rockets for Game 5 at the Toyota Center. Ozzie Smith Jersey . Portland won Game 4 Sunday night at the Moda Center and are now up 3-1. The last time the Blazers won a playoff series came in the 2000 Western Conference semifinals against the Utah Jazz. They fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games in the Conference Finals, but since, Portland has lost six times in the first round. That could all change on Wednesday. The Trail Blazers won the first two games in Houston, then fell in Game 3 at home. Portland is on the precipice of advancement, but its been a tough trek to get to this point. Three of the first four game went to overtime, including Game 4, which the Blazers won 123-120. "Its not exhausting if you win, its exhausting if you lose," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said of the series three overtime games. "And weve lost two of the three." LaMarcus Aldridge scored a game-high 29 points for the fifth-seeded Blazers, followed by 25 from Nicolas Batum. Damian Lillard had 23 and Wesley Matthews added 21. James Harden had 28 points to lead the Rockets, Chandler Parsons scored 26 -- but just seven after halftime -- and Dwight Howard ended with 25 points and 14 rebounds. Portland took its first lead since 6-5 when Batum spun Parsons around with a crossover dribble and knocked down a 3-pointer from the high right side to make it 99-97 with 4 1/2 minutes left in regulation. Later, Howards only two blocks of the game came before Harden made four foul shots in a row to give Houston a 104-102 edge with 50.9 seconds on the clock. After Batum missed a 3, Jeremy Lin rebounded the ball for the Rockets but was stripped by Mo Williams. Matthews missed a layup, but Lillard got the rebound and kicked it to Williams, who knocked down a 3 to give Portland a one-point lead with 18.9 seconds left in the fourth. Howards game-tying dunk came after Dorell Wright missed one of two foul shots for the Blazers, and Williams missed a 3-point try at the buzzer for Portland. Matthews opened overtime by wrestling the ball away from Howard and called a timeout, Parsons smacked Aldridge across the face at the other end for a Flagrant 1 foul and Aldridge made his free throws for the first points of overtime. Still, the game was tied until Batum scored five straight to spark a 7-0 run that gave the Blazers the lead for good. He made a 3-pointer after Aldridge stripped Howard under the Rockets basket, then found Lillard in transition for a layup and 117-110 lead with 2:19 to play. Troy Daniels, the former D-League player and unexpected hero for the Rockets in Game 3 when he hit the winning 3 in the closing seconds of overtime, made his first three NBA foul shots to get them within a point with 8.9 seconds left. After Williams made two free throws at the other end, Matthews stepped in front of Patrick Beverley just beyond midcourt and knocked the ball loose, sealing the win -- Portlands second in overtime in the series. "It was another terrific game and I think its obvious that both teams are pretty evenly matched," said Portland coach Terry Stotts. "I was really proud of the way we played in the second half. I thought we showed a lot of heart and determination to get back into the game." If needed, Game 6 will be Friday night in Portland. Enos Slaughter Jersey . -- Manchester United thrilled a record crowd with a brilliant opening goal -- and even Cristiano Ronaldos unexpected entrance proved futile for Real Madrid. Bob Gibson Jersey.com) - Marc Gasol and the Grizzlies withstood 18 Dallas 3-pointers, as Memphis took control in the third quarter and fended off a Mavericks rally en route to a 114-105 win in a Southwest Division showdown.NEW YORK, N.Y. - NBA owners went back to work Wednesday on Commissioner Adam Silvers desire to end Donald Sterlings ownership of the Los Angeles Clippers. The advisory/finance committee held its second conference call in the past two weeks, reviewing the timing and process for forcing Sterling to sell the franchise following his lifetime ban for making racist comments. League spokesman Mike Bass said in a statement that the committee also discussed the search for a new CEO and got an update on Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatums visit with Clippers employees. The owners plan to meet again next week. Minnesota owner Glen Taylor chairs the committee that also includes Miamis Micky Arison, the Lakers Jeanie Buss, Oklahoma Citys Clay Bennett, New Yorks James Dolan, Bostons Wyc Grousbeck, San Antonios Peter Holt, Phoenixs Robert Sarver, Indiaanas Herb Simon and Torontos Larry Tanenbaum. Matt Carpenter Jersey. Silver banned Sterling from anything to do with the league or the team, fined him $2.5 million, and said he would urge owners to force Sterling to sell the franchise he has owned since 1981. That would require Silver or another owner to charge Sterling with violating Article 13 of the NBAs Constitution and bylaws, which addresses acts that could lead to the termination of ownership. A hearing would then be held and require a three-fourths vote of the board of governors for approval. If that happens, control of the team would fall to the commissioner. The league may already be planning for that, announcing last week that it was working with the Clippers to appoint a CEO. Beyond Sterlings ban, team president Andy Roeser has taken an indefinite leave of absence. Cheap Ducks JerseysCheap Coyotes Jerseys Cheap Bruins Jerseys Cheap Sabres Jerseys Cheap Flames Jerseys Cheap Hurricanes Jerseys Cheap Blackhawks Jerseys Cheap Avalanche JerseysCheap Blue Jackets Jerseys Cheap Stars Jerseys Cheap Red Wings Jerseys Cheap Oilers Jerseys Cheap Florida Panthers Jerseys Cheap Los Angeles Kings Jerseys Cheap Wild Jerseys ' ' '