ground and it bounced up and hit home plate umpire Bill Miller on

PORTLAND, Ore. - LaMarcus Aldridges first basket of this season was a bit of a surprise, even to him.Aldridge hit a 3-pointer and Portlands All-Star forward went on to score 27 points in the Trail Blazers 106-89 season-opening victory over the injury-depleted Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night.Aldridge, who has been working on his long-range shot, said Russell Westbrooks defence on the play gave him no choice but to shoot.I dont think anyone was thinking my first shot would be a long 3, so it was pretty cool, he said.The Thunder only suited up nine players. Most notably they were without reigning NBA MVP Kevin Durant, who had surgery for a fractured bone in his right foot this month and will likely be sidelined until December.Westbrook picked up the slack, with 38 points, including 26 in the first half.After trailing for much of the game, Portland pulled to an 89-80 lead with 7 minutes left on Damian Lillards 3-pointer. Nicolas Batum passed to Aldridge for the alley-oop dunk to put the Blazers up 93-83 and the Thunder could not catch up.It felt great, Aldridge said. Ive been waiting for this game for a while.Portland outscored the Thunder 31-12 in the fourth quarter. All five Blazers starters were in double figures.With 14 straight home-opening victories, the Blazers matched the Boston Celtics record set from 1979-92.Also sitting out the opener for the Thunder were guard Reggie Jackson (right ankle), forward Grant Jerrett (ankle surgery), guard Jeremy Lamb (lower back sprain), forward Mitch McGary (left foot fracture) and guard Anthony Morrow (left MCL sprain).Durant averaged 32 points last season when the Thunder went to the Western Conference finals, carrying the team when Westbrook was nursing a knee injury. The roles are reversed to start this season.I thought we played hard. Thats the only thing I can ask from the guys. Just compete, play hard and play for each other. They did that tonight but we made too many mistakes at the end of the game, Thunder coach Scott Brooks said.The Blazers opened with the exact same roster as last season, when they won 54 games and advanced to the second round of the playoffs.Despite being short-handed, Oklahoma City took a 13-5 lead on Westbrooks seven-point outburst.The Blazers pulled in front 35-34 in the second quarter on a 12-footer from Chris Kaman, picked up by the Blazers as a free agent in the off-season to help backup Robin Lopez.Westbrook hit five straight free throws to give the Thunder back the lead, and he dunked to close out the half make it 54-49 for Oklahoma City at the break.Westbrook pushed the lead to 71-65 midway through the third quarter with a layup and the free throw. But the Blazers never let the game get away from them and trailed just 77-75 going into the final quarter.Lillard, who had no points in the first half, hit a 3-pointer that gave Portland an 81-77 lead with 10:35 go.We put ourselves in position to win the game but we dont take moral victories around here and never will, Westbrook said. We just gotta find a way to close the game out better.TIP-INSTrail Blazers: The Blazers have a new floor at the Moda Center, thanks to a fan contest last spring that garnered 19,000 entries. The court is lighter within the 3-point arc and the keys are painted solid red. The Blazers pinwheel is still at centre court. ... Portland was without centre Meyers Leonard because of an upper respiratory infection.Thunder: Durant was on the court in his sweats in pregame warmups, his foot in a sturdy grey boot. He changed into a suit and watched the game from courtside. It was the first game against the Blazers he had missed in his career. ... Oklahoma Citys schedule has the Thunder travelling 6,300 total miles with two back-to-backs. ... As usual when the Thunder come to town, there were several Seattle SuperSonics jerseys in the crowd.BATUMS D: Batums defence of Westbrook in the fourth quarter helped boost the Blazers. Westbrook had just two of his points in the final period. Thats kind of been my job since I got here, to take the best player and to try to stop him, said the versatile forward. Batum finished with 16 points, five rebounds and six assists.QUOTING: Brooks on Westbrook: Russells our leader. Hes our leader on the court until Kevin comes back — and then weve got two leaders. I have no complaints how Russell played. Hes an emotional, competitive basketball player and hes going to lead us that way. I thought he was terrific tonight.LILLARDS SLOW START: Lillard finished with 10 points, seven in the fourth quarter alone. He and Wesley Matthews combined to make all five of their 3-point attempts in the period. I didnt want to force my rhythm on to the game, Lillard said. I knew there would come a point where I needed to attack or make a shot or make a play, and that time came.UP NEXTTrail Blazers: At Sacramento Kings on Friday night.Thunder: At Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night. Grossiste Air Max Belgique . He reps the 4-1-6The insecurity of Canadian basketball fans is not what it once was with the home grown talent making its way to the big leagues, but it is still nice to see the local kids remembering where they come from once they make their way south. Air Max Pas Cher Belgique . The start of the seasons fifth and final major was delayed two hours due to heavy rain in the area. The tournament eventually began, but with water on the greens and the rain persisting, players were called back to the clubhouse less than an hour after the first group teed off. http://www.airmaxpascher.be/ . 3. Trevor Ariza left them talkin about 40. Ariza made eight 3-pointers and scored a career-high 40 points to help the Washington Wizards win their sixth straight game, 122-103 over Philadelphia on Saturday night. Air Max Pas Cher En Ligne . Lawries batting helmet hit an umpire during his ninth-inning outburst in the Jays 4-3 loss to Tampa Bay on Tuesday. The 22-year-old threw his helmet to the ground and it bounced up and hit home plate umpire Bill Miller on the right hip after Lawrie was called out on strikes for the second out. Air Max Belgique Pas Cher . Team officials did not indicate the extent of the injury Saturday, simply listing Rose with "left knee soreness." Rose has played two preseason games without any sign of problems. The first NBA game in South America now will be missing its biggest star.TORONTO -- Tom Anselmi is stepping down as chief operating officer of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment. The company, which owns the Maple Leafs, Raptors, Toronto FC and Marlies, announced his resignation Friday in a news release. Anselmi first joined the organization in December 1996 and was appointed COO in 2004. His resignation is thee latest in a series of major changes at MLSE since new president and CEO Tim Leiweke took over June 30.dddddddddddd The company parted ways with Raptors boss Bryan Colangelo earlier this summer and Toronto FC president and general manager Kevin Payne was fired this week. Anselmis last day with the company will be Sept. 13. ' ' '