LOS ANGELES -- As their surprising turnaround rolls on, the Portland Trail Blazers are now tied for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Damian Lillard scored 22 points and Portland beat the Los Angeles Lakers 97-81 on Sunday night to pull even with Denver for eighth place in the West. Both the Blazers and Nuggets are 35-38 with nine games left in the season -- and they play each other Tuesday night in Portland.
"We wanted to get to this point since the All-Star break," Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts said.