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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Ellis’ 39-point effort too much for Trail Blazers

Josh Dubow Associated Press

OAKLAND, Calif. – Monta Ellis scored 39 points and the Golden State Warriors scored 11 straight points to erase a six-point deficit in the fourth quarter and beat the Portland Trail Blazers 109-102 on Saturday night in their first Christmas home game.

David Lee added 21 points, and Dorell Wright scored five of his 16 during the decisive spurt to help the Warriors win back-to-back games for the first time since Nov. 8-10.

They didn’t have to dig out of as deep a hole as they did Tuesday night, when they rallied from 16 points down in the fourth quarter to beat the Sacramento Kings in overtime. But they still needed clutch plays late to snap Portland’s three-game winning streak.

LaMarcus Aldridge gave the Blazers a 97-91 lead with just over 5 minutes left and it looked as if Portland was in position to win for the second straight time in Oakland following nine losses in a row here.

But Wesley Matthews fouled Ellis on a 3-pointer to start Golden State’s run. Ellis made all three free throws, and Wright hit a tying 3-pointer on the Warriors’ next possession. Wright then stole a pass from Rudy Fernandez and went the other way for a dunk that gave the Warriors their first lead of the quarter.

Matthews led Portland with 25 points and Nicolas Batum added 18. Andre Miller had 12 points and 14 assists.