National Basketball Association

76ers rally past Blazers in overtime

Published Mar. 24, 2009 6:48 a.m. ET

foxsports

Andre Miller had 27 points and 10 rebounds and Thaddeus Young and Andre Iguodala scored 25 points each as the Philadelphia 76ers rallied in overtime to beat the Portland Trail Blazers 114-108 on Monday night.

The Sixers (36-33) scored eight consecutive points in overtime, including a rebound basket by Miller with 1:55 left to give Philadelphia a 104-103 lead.

Young hit 10 of 15 shots and scored 17 of his 25 points during the second half. Philadelphia went 35-of-39 from the free-throw line, and hit 51.4 percent (38-of-74) of its shots.

Portland's LaMarcus Aldridge had 24 points and 12 rebounds, while Steve Blake scored 22 points. The Blazers (44-27) are tied for second place with Utah in the Northwest Division, one game behind first-place Denver.

Philadelphia dominated the first half to take a 58-44 halftime lead. The Sixers took advantage of leg-weary Portland during the first quarter, shooting 81 percent from the floor (13-of-16) to take a 31-26 lead. Early in the second quarter, Reggie Evans scored six points during a 13-2 run as Philadelphia widened its lead to double figures.

Portland shot 1-of-14 from 3-point range during the first half, but the Blazers shot themselves back into contention after halftime. Blake hit three consecutive 3-pointers during a late third-quarter run that cut Philadelphia's lead to 74-72. Then, trailing 79-72 early in the fourth quarter, Rudy Fernandez made a pair of 3-pointers to fuel a 13-0 run to give the Blazers an 85-79 lead.

Philadelphia responded with a spurt of its own, a 15-6 run that gave the Sixers a 94-91 lead with 2:50 remaining. Iguodala later hit two free throws with 20 seconds remaining to tie the game at 98-98 and force overtime.

Notes

Portland's Nicolas Batum returned to the starting lineup after missing the past two games with a sprained left ankle. ... The Blazers' Brandon Roy had a streak of 20-point games end at 12. Roy scored 12 points against the Sixers. ... Portland plays six of its final 11 games in the Rose Garden, where it is 28-7, the fifth-best home record in the NBA. ... Philadelphia finished a five-game road trip against the Blazers. ... Portland center Greg Oden made his first playing appearance at home since the All-Star break. The crowd gave Oden a rousing ovation, and 30 seconds after entering the game, he dunked en route to a 3-point play.