Batum's

three-point

shot ices it

JOE FREEMAN

Phhhhhew. They escaped another one.

The Trail Blazers recovered from a three-quarter daze just in time Friday night at the Rose Garden to defeat the New Jersey Nets 109-100 and maintain their precarious standing in the Western Conference playoff race.

It took a gutsy, career-night from rookie Nicolas Batum, a stellar fourth quarter from All-Star Brandon Roy and clutch free throw shooting down the stretch, but the Blazers scored 38 points in the final quarter to keep pace in the West.

With one month and one day remaining in the season --and 17 games --the Blazers (41-24) sit in sixth place in the conference, one-half game behind the New Orleans Hornets.

In doing so, the Blazers furthered a string of impressive statistics. They improved to 20-5 against the Eastern Conference, the best mark in the Western Conference. They improved to 25-6 against losing teams and to 29-3 when scoring a least 100 points. The Blazers also continued their impressive home-court dominance, moving their record at the Rose Garden to 28-6.

But while the final score might reflect a comfortable victory for the sellout crowd of 20,623, it was anything but for the Blazers, who trailed by as many as 12 points in the game and by as many as eight in the fourth quarter.

After trailing for essentially the entire game, the Blazers took their first lead of the second half when Joel Przybilla made two free throws with 5:37 remaining to give the Blazers an 88-87 lead. It was part of a 15-6 run that put them up 89-87 with 5:11 left.

The Nets (28-37) refused to go away and kept it close until the final seconds, but would never lead again. With the Blazers clinging to a 98-96 lead, Batum sank a clutch three-pointer with 29.9 seconds left that gave the Blazers s 101-96 lead and some breathing room.

From there, they went 8 for 8 from the free throw line to ice the victory.

Batum, who dinged his strained right shoulder in the first quarter, gutted it out and finished with a career-high 20 points. Roy couldn't buy a basket early, making just 3 of 15 field goals through three quarters, but discovered his touch in the pivotal fourth quarter (5 of 6, 16 points) and finished with 31 points.

LaMarcus Aldridge (19 points, 10 rebounds) Steve Blake (15 points, five assists) and Travis Outlaw (13 points, 10 rebounds) also had strong outings for the Blazers, who now embark on a five-game East Coast trip.

Notes:

Rudy Fernandez, who has lingering right hip and chest pains from his violent fall against the Los Angeles Lakers, missed his second consecutive game. But the rookie guard is expected to travel with the team on its trip. . . . Roy didn't make his first field goal until the 8:26 mark of the third quarter, when he completed a driving layup through the heart of the Nets' defense. Roy had missed his first eight shots. . . . Przybilla blocked a season-high five shots, helping the Blazers finish with a season-high tying 10.

Joe Freeman: 503-294-5183; joefreeman@news.oregonian.com To read his Behind the Beat blog, go to http://blog.oregonlive.com/ behindblazersbeat/