PORTLAND, Ore. - On a night that could have gone terribly wrong for the Trail Blazers, Damian Lillard made everything right in the end.Lillard scored 39 points and made the go-ahead basket with 36 seconds remaining as Portland rallied from a 10-point deficit in the second half to beat the Los Angeles Lakers 98-94 Monday night.In the first quarter, Blazers starting guard Wesley Matthews collapsed to the floor and grabbed his left knee while driving to the basket. Matthews was helped to the locker room, then returned to the bench and eventually the game during the second quarter.Matthews, averaging 16.9 points per game, said he had a hyperextended left knee but didnt think it was serious. He played 30 minutes and scored five points.I told him he scared me, because he did, Portland coach Terry Stotts said. I was shocked to see him come back. Im no doctor, but it didnt look good.Lillard hit four 3-pointers, and scored 16 points during the fourth quarter to lead the Blazers (27-8). He has scored at least 39 points in three of his past nine games.LaMarcus Aldridge added 21 points, and reserve centre Meyers Leonard had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Portland.The Lakers (11-24) were without Kobe Bryant, the teams leading scorer at 23.6 points per game. Bryant stayed home for a scheduled day of rest. It was the fourth game Bryant has skipped after sustaining two leg injuries the past two seasons.Jordan Hill led Los Angeles with 23 points and 14 rebounds. Five Lakers scored in double figures, including Jeremy Lin with 14 points.Lillard has had several big scoring performances of late, often with Portland trailing late in the game and the Blazers needing a boost. Such was the case Monday, with the Lakers leading for most of the second half, and 83-76 with 5:55 remaining.Lillard hit back-to-back 3s during a 12-2 run that gave the Blazers an 88-85 lead. During the final 36 seconds, he made the go-ahead basket and three free throws to help Portland secure the win.I dont live for it, but I would like us to play with the type of urgency we did for the last 8 minutes for the entire game. But when its needed, Im definitely not going to shy away from it, Lillard said.Lillard scored 24 points in the second half and several times hit tough, contested shots.He got hot, definitely, and we didnt do a good enough job of disrupting him. Ive got to do a better job of making his life more difficult, Lin said.The Lakers briefly took a 92-91 lead with 43 seconds remaining on two free throws by Lin. But then Lillard immediately went to work, driving to the basket for the go-ahead layup 7 seconds later.Los Angeles took control early in the third quarter, running off 10 consecutive points to take a 61-54 lead. The Lakers led by as many as 10 before Lillard helped the Blazers cut the deficit to 73-70 heading into the fourth.Neither team was able to shake loose in the first half. The Blazers led by as many as seven, but the Lakers closed the second quarter on a 9-4 run to cut the halftime deficit to 47-45.The first-half highlight came when Nick Young chased down a ball in the backcourt, stepped over midcourt and hit a 40-foot 3-pointer to beat the 24-second shot clock.___TIP-INSLakers: Los Angeles forward Wesley Johnson, who injured his hip Sunday against Indiana, could be back as early as next week, coach Byron Scott said. ... Lakers forward Ryan Kelly, who had played just 46 minutes in the first 44 games, made his first start of the season. ... G Ronnie Price took an elbow to his nose during the third quarter and did not return. Scott said Price, who needed 11 stitches, could play Wednesday against the Los Angeles Clippers, but might have to wear a mask.Trail Blazers: Stotts was selected Western Conference coach of the month for December. Portland went 13-3 in December, tying a franchise record for wins in one month. ... C Chris Kaman made his first start of the season. Robin Lopez (broken right hand) and Joel Freeland (right shoulder) are out for an extended period.LEONARDS BIG NIGHTLeonard had his first double-double of the season. The most surprising element of his game came on the perimeter, where he went 3 of 4 from 3-point range. Leonard helped Portland get going in the fourth quarter with a four-point play when he was fouled while hitting a 3-pointer that cut the Lakers lead to 76-74.He played like we needed him to. He was making shots, shooting confident and grabbing rebounds. It was an all-around good performance, Matthews said.LILLARD LIKES LAKERSLillards 39 points was a career best for a home game, breaking his previous high of 38, also against the Lakers. It was the second-highest scoring performance by a Blazers player against Los Angeles; the record is 43 points by Clyde Drexler in 1989. In eight career games against the Lakers, Lillard is averaging 26.3 points.UP NEXTLakers: Wednesday at Los Angeles Clippers.Trail Blazers: Thursday at home against Orlando. Stitched Mariners Jerseys . Funny, they looked like longtime friends during Pittsburghs 5-1 demolition of Dallas on Tuesday night. Quick to the puck and even quicker to the net, the Penguins top line overwhelmed the suddenly struggling Stars as Pittsburgh bounced back from a dismal weekend sweep at the hands of Philadelphia by jumping on Dallas early. Cheap Mariners Jerseys . The Wizards announced Friday that Webster had surgery to repair a herniated disc in his lower back. The operation was performed Thursday in Los Angeles. https://www.cheapmariners.com/. Mark Teahen scored the go-ahead run in the home seventh on an error by Scott Sizemore, who had knotted the game with a solo homer in the previous half- inning. Paul Konerko then hit an RBI single which proved to be the winning run. Mariners Jerseys China .C. -- The Carolina Panthers announced Thursday theyve signed free agent wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery to a two-year contract, helping rebuild a depleted wide receiving corps. Seattle Mariners Gear . According to a report from the Hamilton Spectator, Infrastructure Ontario has informed the City of Hamilton and the Tiger-Cats the stadium may not be ready by the June 30 deadline.Surrey director of cricket Alec Stewart believes Ben Stokes could open the batting alongside Jason Roy for their World T20 game with Afghanistan if Alex Hales is ruled out through injury. Hales and Roy have struck up a positive partnership at the top of the order but Nottinghamshires Hales is struggling with a back problem that will be assessed on Wednesday morning ahead of the game, live on Sky Sports 2 HD from 9am.James Vince appears likely to come in to replace him but former England captain Stewart is keen to see Stokes and Roy opening the batting in Delhi. It will be a huge blow, Jason Roy and Alex Hales are two very destructive players and they have created a very good opening partnership, Stewart told Sky Sports News HQ.Lets hope he is 100 per cent fit and the two of them can go out and open the batting and repeat what they did the other day against South Africa.You want to still take the attacking options and I wouldnt be against pushing Ben Stokes up the top of the order if Alex Hales isnt fit. Eoin Morgan says England will leave their decision over playing a third spinner against Afghanistan on Wednesday until the last minute. Theres James Vince there in reserve but if Ben Stokes bats for 10 or 12 overs, England will win the game, I promise you that.He doesnt open too often, perhaps just one or two occasions for Durham, but I would gamble and say to Ben go up there, show how good you are, and bat with Jason Roy.Stewart is well aware of Roys abilities, having regularly seen him oppening the batting for Surrey, and he feels he has the ability to swing a game in his teams favour in the same way Stokes can.dddddddddddd He is a destructive player. If you speak to bowlers, he is one of the last batsmen they would want to bowl to, Stewart said of Roy.He destroyed Dale Steyn in that opening over [against South Africa], to really set the tone for England to go on and win that game.Joe Root took the plaudits and rightly so but Jason Roy really took the attack to the opposition, he put them on the backfoot, to allow England to bring that run-rate down. Surrey Director of Cricket Stewart would like to see Stokes and Jason Roy bat together at the top of the order Just like Stokes, if Roy bats 10 overs in a 20-over game, that side will win more times than not.He [Roy] just needs to bat a little longer now and get 75 or even a hundred.As for Englands chances of winning the tournament, Stewart is convinced they can beat anyone on their day and could yet cause an upset.I said before the tournament started, England wont be one of the favourites but they are a very dangerous side, he added.We saw that against South Africa and although we didnt see it [in their opening defeat] against West Indies, if they are on their A game, they can beat anyone. Morgan unsure on third spinner Eoin Morgan will make late call on how many spinners will face Afghanistan I include West Indies and India in that, who are probably the two favourites, although we must not discount New Zealand.If England can repeat what they did with the bat against South Africa, they then need to be just a little bit smarter with the ball and execute their variations a little better.They can go all the way but they have to be on their A game.Watch England v Afghanistan in the World T20 on Wednesday. Coverage begins on Sky Sports 2 HD at 9am. Also See: Moeen: Spin could be crucial Root inspires record chase Morgan unsure on third spinner Cricket video ' ' '