stole 34 bases in 2010, Abbercrombie has played 14 professional season

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. NFL China Jerseys . David Perron had a career high four-point night with two goals and two assists as the Oilers experienced an offensive explosion, blasting the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-0 to record a rare home win for their second victory in a row. China Jerseys Online .5 million contract with the right-handed reliever. Ziegler revealed the agreement via Twitter, saying hes "really excited to stay in Arizona for a couple more years, at least. https://www.chinajerseysreview.com/ . - The Carolina Panthers believe Steve Smith lost "top-end" speed, a big reason the franchise parted ways with its all-time leading receiver. China Jerseys Review . People familiar with the case told The Associated Press on Friday that arbitrator Fredric Horowitz could issue his decision this weekend. Cheap China Jerseys . Meanwhile, the Jets extended their winning streak to four and remain perfect under Paul Maurice. Its the Jets second four-game winning streak of the season, the other coming in mid-November. Winnipeg Goldeyes manager Rick Forney announced today the signing of veteran outfielder Reggie Abercrombie to a contract for the 2014 season. Abercrombie, 33, has played parts of the last four seasons in the American Association with the Sioux Falls Canaries, hitting .316 with 54 home runs and 213 RBI in 242 games with Sioux Falls. He also played parts of three seasons in the Major Leagues with the Florida Marlins and Houston Astros from 2006-2008. “We are super thrilled to have Reggie join the Goldeyes organization. With Rhyne Hughes not being able to come up and join our team, we needed to find someone that could replace Rhyne in the middle of the lineup and be an impact guy. Hes the best guy out there for that role,” Forney said of Abercrombie, who started the season in the Mexican League with Monclova, where he hit .314 with four home runs and 16 RBI in 16 games. The only player to have a 20/20 season in the American Association when he hit 22 home runs and stole 34 bases in 2010, Abbercrombie has played 14 professional seasons.dddddddddddd He reached the pinnacle on April 4, 2006 when he suited up for the National Leagues Florida Marlins. He went on to play 111 games with the Marlins in 2006, batting .212 with five home runs and 24 RBI in 255 at-bats. The following season he appeared in 35 games with Florida and another 34 games with the Astros in 2007. In 180 Major League games, he batted .223 with 9 home runs and 34 RBI. A career .280 hitter in the minor leagues, Abercrombie is a true power threat. Hes averaged 22 home runs and 82 RBI during the last four seasons in the American Association and Mexican League. After being drafted by Los Angeles Dodgers in the 23rd round of the 1999 MLB amateur draft, Abercrombie played the next 10 seasons in the affiliated ranks with the Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Marlins and Astros. During that time, he spent parts of four seasons at Class AA and seven seasons at Class AAA. Hes a career .290 hitter at the Class AAA level. ' ' '