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(SportsNetwork.com) - Two of the Western Conferences postseason teams from a season ago tangle early in this campaign when the Portland Trail Blazers welcome the Dallas Mavericks to the Moda Center. Theyre a great team, Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. Theyre a playoff team, and theyre a different team than what weve seen with the quality of their big men and their 3-point shooting ability straight across the board. Its a tough matchup, and thats always a very difficult place to play. The Mavs begin this mini road trip on a roll, winning three straight and vaulting into the league lead in scoring at 111.8 ppg. Dallas will also visit the Utah Jazz on Friday before returning home. The Mavericks reached 3-1 Monday night with a 118-113 victory at home over the Boston Celtics. Chandler Parsons scored 29 points on 10-of-15 shooting, but the Mavs nearly squandered a 26-point lead. Jeff Green and Avery Bradley fueled the Celtics comeback, totaling 35 and 32 points, respectively. Bradley had a chance to tie things at the free throw line with 39.5 seconds to go but only made two of his three attempts. Monta Ellis, after fouling Bradley behind the arc, ended Bostons 9-0 run with a tough runner off the glass to give Dallas a 116-113 lead. He made two more free throws to seal the win. They are scrappy and you know that they are going to continue to fight back, Mavs center Tyson Chandler said of the Celtics. Dirk Nowitzki netted 27 points with seven rebounds while Ellis added 14 points for the Mavs. Chandler posted a double-double with 10 points and 12 boards, while Devin Harris managed 12 points. The Mavs shot 53.7 percent from the floor and 56 percent from long range. The Blazers got back on track Tuesday night. They halted a two-game slide with an emphatic statement game, a 101-82 home victory over LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Needless to say, it was good to get a win, said Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts. But more importantly, it was how we got it, how we played. That looked like the team that we need to be. We withstood their barrage in the first quarter, stayed with our schemes and our coverages and the next 3 1/2 quarters, we did a great job defensively. We stuck with the defense and we got rhythm to the offense. It was a solid win at both ends of the court. The Cavs opened the game 10-for-10 from the field, but tailed off offensively. Cleveland never posted 20 points in the remaining three quarters and finished the contest with 13 points over the final 12 minutes. Damian Lillard busted out of his shooting slump with 27 points. He went 6- for-13 from the field, 5-for-10 from long range and 10-for-10 from the foul line. Its the same game that Ive been playing, said Lillard. The only difference was the shots just went in. It was pretty simple: just play the game. I thought we did a great job of moving the ball and everybody defended well. Wes Matthews (21), Robin Lopez (19) and LaMarcus Aldridge (16) finished in double figures. The Blazers also held the fabled James to just 11 points. The Mavs won two of three against the Blazers last season and have captured 10 of the last 15 meetings. Dallas is 12-6 in its last 18 in Rose City. Officiel Air Max Pas Cher . "Yes, Id like to get them in," Detroits rookie manager said. "Mother Natures going to have a say in that." Sure enough, the Tigers had their game against the Kansas City Royals postponed because of rain on Thursday. Air Max Pas Cher Chine . Alen, 28, hit .315 with five home runs, 59 RBI and a career-high nine stolen bases for the Goldeyes last season. He is the longest serving catcher in Goldeyes history, having already spent five seasons with the organization. http://www.airmaxpaschersite.fr/basket-a...270-outlet.html. He still wanted out. "It just seemed like the direction they were going didnt fit what I thought my career was going to be," Kesler said. "At the end of the day I want to win a championship and I want to win it now, and four years is a little too long for me. Air Max 90 Pas Cher Chine .Y. - Major League Soccers independent review panel has taken back the fine and one-game suspension it placed on Toronto FC forward Luke Moore earlier this week. Destockage Air Max 97 . A person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press the Steelers will part ways with the former Pro Bowler, a move that hardly serves as a surprise after fifth-year linebacker Jason Worilds agreed to accept a "transition player" tag last week.TORONTO - While England seems destined for "massive change" in the wake of its failed World Cup campaign, Jermain Defoe says he can still contribute goals to the national cause. "Ill never turn my back on my country," the Toronto FC striker told reporters after training Wednesday. "Like I mentioned before I still feel like Ive got a lot to offer. If I didnt feel that way, Id say theres no point because youre not doing anyone any favours if youre sort of like being selfish (and) you havent got much to offer. "But I still feel strong, I feel sharp. So hopefully at some point Ill get called up (again). How I feel at the minute, Im still ready to play and score goals for my country." The 31-year-old Defoe, who has 19 goals in 55 appearances for his country, was named to Englands 30-man World Cup roster but did not make the final 23. At the time, he said he was devastated by the snub. England (0-2-1) finished last in Group D behind Costa Rica, Uruguay and Italy, managing to score just two goals. "Spain are out, Italy are out," Defoe said. "Some big nations are out but obviously it would have been nice to see (England) progress to the later stage of the tournament. But it wasnt meant to be. A lot of young players, they still have opportunities again to play in tournaments and Im sure theyll do well. But this year it wasnt meant to be. It was a tough group." England captain Steven Gerrard and vice-captain Frank Lampard have said they will take some time to ponder their international future. Veteran fullback Ashley Cole opted to retire prior to the tournament. Veteran midfielder Michael Carrick was also left out of the England squad. "I think its a change," Defoe said, "because obviously theres so many young players coming through — good young players. Obviously theyre inexperienced but theyll get experience with games and I suppose thats what the manager wanted to do when he left me out, Michael Carrick, Ashley Cole, hhe wanted to go with the younger players.dddddddddddd. "Hopefully theyll do well but its going to be a massive change ... but well see what happens." Meanwhile, Defoe said he did not take offence at former manager Harry Redknapp saying some of his England players at Spurs had tried to shirk national team duty. Current England manager Roy Hodgson and Gerrard both said Defoe should not be tarred with that brush. "Its difficult for me (to react) because Im not one those players," said Defoe. "Ive never missed a squad and obviously I dont know who those players are. At the end of the day, when youre playing for your country, its the greatest honour ... I always turned out for my country, even if I was half fit." Gerrard urged Redknapp to name names but the veteran manager, who now runs Queens Park Rangers, said it would not be fair to the players in question. Defoe was one of a dozen England players at Tottenham during Redknapps tenure. Toronto manager Ryan Nelsen, a former New Zealand international who played under Redknapp, said he thought the comments might have been taken somewhat out of context. Nelsen, who captained the All Whites, said he would be outraged if anyone suggested he didnt love playing for his country. But he said theres give and take when it comes to club versus country, acknowledging he had asked not to be picked for some friendlies when they were largely commercial ventures on the other side of the globe and they bumped heads with major club clashes. While he had hoped to be playing in Brazil, Defoe welcomed the MLS break during the group stage of the World Cup. Toronto gave its players eight days off following the 1-0 win over San Jose on June 7. Still he admitted to having "itchy feet," wanting to get back to playing. Toronto (6-4-1) returns to action Friday in New York against the Red Bulls (4-5-6). Nelsens only injury concerns are winger Daniel Lovitz (concussion) and Brazilian striker Gilberto (hip flexor). ' ' '