Trail Blazers End Slide With Victory Over Pistons

The Portland Trail Blazers needed to go down to the closing seconds to end a season-worst slump.

Rasheed Wallace scored seven of his 24 points in the final 4:32 Saturday night as the Trail Blazers ended a three-game losing streak with a 99-94 victory over the Detroit Pistons at Auburn Hills, Mich.

The Pistons’ loss came on the night they were celebrating the 10th anniversary of their 1990 NBA championship--won at the expense of Portland.

Grant Hill scored 30 points and Jerry Stackhouse 22 for Detroit.

But with Detroit trailing, 95-94, and 11 seconds to play, Hill missed a layup, and Portland got two free throws each from Detlef Schrempf and Scottie Pippen to account for the final score.

“We really wanted this one,” Portland Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “Losing streaks are like a gorilla on your back as the losses start to mount up.”

Portland had dropped four of five games to slip four games behind the Lakers in the Pacific Division.

“We were getting a little concerned,” said Pippen, who scored 18 points. “You don’t want to lose a bunch in a row after we were challenging the Lakers for the best record in the league. It got a little frustrating, because we want to keep the heat on them.”

The loss was the first for the Pistons’ interim coach, George Irvine, who started 2-0 after replacing Alvin Gentry on Monday.

“We had an opportunity to win against a very, very good team,” Irvine said. “But we aren’t looking at this as a moral victory. Not this late in the season.”

Atlanta 91, Vancouver 86--Jim Jackson scored 22 points and Alan Henderson 20 at Atlanta as the Hawks ended a four-game losing streak.

Jason Terry, whose free throw with 15.7 seconds to play gave Atlanta a four-point lead, had 15 points and a season-high 12 assists.

Despite 20 points from Mike Bibby, the Grizzlies, playing their fourth road game in five days, lost their eighth in a row.

Orlando 110, Denver 107--John Amaechi scored a career-high 31 points to lead the Magic at Orlando, Fla.

George McCloud’s three-point basket with 1:09 remaining pulled the Nuggets within three, the Magic’s smallest lead since early in the first quarter.

After both teams traded scoreless possessions, the Nuggets had 8.4 seconds left to tie the score, but Chris Herren’s three-point attempt missed.

Denver, which got 35 points from Antonio McDyess and 25 from McCloud, held the Magic without a basket for the final 4:27.

Dallas 104, Phoenix 99--Erick Strickland scored 12 of his career-high 36 points in the fourth quarter at Dallas as the Mavericks ended a six-game losing streak.

Michael Finley added 22 points for the Mavericks, including a three-point basket that put Dallas in front for good with 59 seconds remaining.

Clifford Robinson scored 29 points to lead the Suns, who had won five of six. Shawn Marion added 18 points for Phoenix.

Minnesota 100, Houston 86--Terrell Brandon scored 24 points at Houston to help the Timberwolves to their fifth consecutive road victory.

Steve Francis led Houston with 19 points after missing his first five shots. Teammate Carlos Rogers scored 12.

Wally Szczerbiak had 19 points for Minnesota, while Kevin Garnett scored 17 and Anthony Peeler 11.