Oden looks to build on the best game of his young career as the Blazers try to send the Cavaliers to their fifth loss in six road games Wednesday night.

Oden, the No. 1 overall pick in 2007, missed all of last season after undergoing microfracture surgery on his right knee. Halfway though his long-awaited rookie season, the 7-footer hasn't yet developed into the dominant inside force Portland (25-16) hopes he'll become, but he looked capable of delivering on that potential Monday night.

Oden scored a season-high 24 points and matched a season best with 15 rebounds as the Blazers beat Milwaukee 102-85. He was 9-for-14 from the field and added two steals and two blocked shots.

"This feels good," Oden said. "It gets my confidence up."

Oden's performance against the Bucks was a dramatic improvement from his play over the final three games of the Blazers' four-game road trip that concluded Saturday. He totaled 12 points and seven rebounds while battling foul trouble in those contests before returning home and helping Portland improve to 15-4 at the Rose Garden.

"The attitude he had tonight was better," Blazers guard Brandon Roy said. "Some nights he's a little down or has a little foul trouble. Tonight he was vocal and stayed with it, so hopefully he can have some carry over from this game."

The Cavaliers (31-8) hope to contain Oden as they continue their four-game western trip. Cleveland is 20-0 at home but has dropped four of its last five on the road, most recently suffering a 105-88 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the trip opener Monday night.

LeBron James was held to 23 points and 9-for-25 shooting, and the Cavaliers were outscored 56-38 in the second half.

"Defensively, they were really good," James said of the Western Conference-best Lakers. "The same shots we made in the first half, we didn't in the second half. We had some open looks, but we couldn't capitalize and knock them down."

Cleveland was again playing without two starters. Shooting guard Delonte West will be sidelined about six weeks with a fractured right wrist he suffered Thursday night, and center Zydrunas Ilgauskas is expected to miss about another week with a left ankle injury.

"You know, we've just got to get healthy," Cavs forward Ben Wallace told the team's official Web site. "It's tough to come into people's houses and get a win when you don't have all of your weapons."

The Cavaliers, though, haven't had much trouble beating the Blazers lately, winning seven of the last nine meetings and both last season.

James had 37 points and 14 rebounds and made a winning layup with less than one second remaining in Cleveland's 84-83 victory in Portland on Jan. 30. He had 24 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in the Cavaliers' 88-80 home win over the Blazers on March 10.