extra mile

vs. Miles

Grizzlies take

lead with

4:51 left

JOE FREEMAN

There was a little bit of everything Wednesday night at the Rose Garden.

The return of Darius Miles. Injury updates. Trade speculation. And, oh yeah, a little Basketball, too.

In their first game since the All-Star break, the Trail Blazers did not appear to be a team distracted by today's looming NBA trade deadline as they registered a 94-90 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies before a sellout crowd of 20,385.

Brandon Roy, fresh off his second All-Star Game appearance, scored seven of his game-high 24 points in the pivotal fourth quarter. He also had nine assists as the Blazers (33-20) started their post-All-Star stretch on a positive note.

Point guard Steve Blake, returning after missing 13 of the past 14 games because of a right separated shoulder, added seven points and eight assists, and the bench scored 31 points to help the Blazers maintain their place in the nip-and-tuck Western Conference playoff picture.

But the victory didn't come easily.

The Blazers coasted for much of the first half on hot shooting and team-oriented play, building a 16-point lead in the second quarter. They made 13 of their first 18 field goal attempts (72.2 percent), mixing fastbreak dunks with half-court drives and jumpers. Even more impressive, the Blazers had 11 assists on their 13 first-quarter field goals.

The unselfish play would continue as the Blazers, who finished with 27 assists, had 24 assists on their first 28 field goals.

But after the Blazers built a 50-34 lead, the Grizzlies used a late second-quarter surge to gain momentum and give the Blazers all they could handle. Memphis used a 13-3 run at the end of the first half to trim the Blazers' lead to 57-53 heading into the locker room. The Grizzlies then outscored the Blazers 7-3 to start the second half, and suddenly, a potential blowout had been reduced to a 60-60 tie.

And it only got tighter from there for the Blazers, who allowed the pesky Grizzlies to take an 86-84 lead with 4:51 left in the game.

But it wouldn't last. Roy nailed a driving jumper to make it 86-86 and then made a free throw on Memphis coach Lionel Hollins' technical foul to give the Blazers an 87-86 advantage with 3:06 left. Travis Outlaw followed with a clutch three-pointer, and Roy added a driving layup and late free throws to ice the win.

Amid everything else, there were distractions for the Blazers. Miles, the one-time head-bopping fan favorite, returned to the Rose Garden as a visitor for the first time since his surprising comeback after the Blazers waived him because of a supposed career-ending knee injury.

Miles, who was booed incessantly every time he touched the ball, finished with six points, four blocked shots, five rebounds and three turnovers in 16-plus minutes off the bench.

And it all came after the Blazers dealt reserve Ike Diogu earlier Wednesday, while more trade speculation swirled around the Rose Garden.

Notes:

Greg Oden missed his seventh game of the season, this time because of an injured left knee, and Blazers coach Nate McMillan said before the game that his rookie center probably also would miss the team's practice today. Oden, who chipped his kneecap during the Blazers' game at Golden State before the All-Star break, still was experiencing swelling and tightness Wednesday. Team doctors plan to re-evaluate him today. Joel Przybilla started in Oden's place, finishing with six points and 15 rebounds. Joe Freeman: 503-294-5183;

joefreeman@news.oregonian.com

To read his Behind the Beat blog,

go to http://blog.oregonlive.com/

behindblazersbeat/

-- Joe Freeman: 503-294-5183;

joefreeman@news.oregonian.com

To read his Behind the Beat blog,

go to http://blog.oregonlive.com/

behindblazersbeat/