PORTLAND — Wesley Matthews thinks the Trail Blazers are better suited for overtime.
That made it tough on the Orlando Magic, who were handed their ninth straight loss in Portland’s 125-119 overtime victory on Monday night. The Blazers have won all five of their games that have gone into extra periods this season.
LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers with 27 points and 10 rebounds, and Matthews finished with 24 points — including a dunk that all but sealed it with less than a minute left.
Both teams were clearly exhausted by the end.
“It’s alright. We’ll take it," Matthews said. “For whatever reason, this team is built for overtime. I’d rather not go into it, I’d rather win it in regulation. But we dug deep."
J.J. Hickson added 20 points and 15 rebounds for his 20th double-double this season for the Blazers, who have won three straight overall and 11 of their past 14 games. It was Portland’s eighth straight win at the Rose Garden.
Nicolas Batum, who finished with 16 points and 10 assists, said Portland’s OT successes are a credit to how well the players have come to know each other.
“The way we play in overtime, we stay focused. We talk," Batum said. “We just stay together."
Aldridge hit a layup and a free throw that put Portland ahead 112-108 with 3:38 in overtime. After the Magic tied it at 112 on J.J. Redick’s hook shot, Blazers rookie Damian Lillard made a pull-up jumper to reclaim the lead.
Lillard added a floater to extend it and Hickson had a fast-break dunk for a 118-112 lead. Matthews punctuated the run with his dunk with 54.9 seconds left.
In other games on Monday:
Celtics 102
Knicks 96
NEW YORK — Paul Pierce scored 23 points, and Boston beat New York in a heated first meeting of the season.
Bulls 118
Cavaliers 92
CHICAGO — Carlos Boozer had 24 points and 11 rebounds to lead Chicago to a rout of Cleveland.
Wizards 101
Thunder 99
WASHINGTON — Bradley Beal made a jumper with 0.3 seconds left after using a pump fake to get open, and short-handed Washington beat Oklahoma City.
Hornets 95
Spurs 88
NEW ORLEANS — Eric Gordon scored six straight points in a fourth quarter spurt and had 24 overall to lead New Orleans to a victory over San Antonio.
Jazz 100
Mavericks 94
SALT LAKE CITY — Gordon Hayward scored a season-high 27 points, including four 3-pointers, and Utah defeated Dallas.
Grizzlies 113
Kings 81
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Wayne Ellington scored a season-high 26 points, hitting six 3-pointers, to help the Grizzlies rout the Kings.