stopped 31 shots in the loss. Well we got one point so start there and go home, said Gomez. I

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Damian Lillard couldnt believe when he got a clear look at the rim. With the final buzzer about to sound, he took his shot. "I got my feet squared up and it felt real good leaving my hands," Portlands point guard said. "Once I saw it on line, I said, Thats got a chance." Lillards shot fell and the Trail Blazers stunned the Houston Rockets 99-98 to take their playoff series in six games and advance to the Western Conference semifinals for the first time in 14 years. In the frenzied postgame celebration, Lillard took the public address microphone and shouted "Rip City!" The hometown crowd roared. Portland, making its first playoff appearance since 2011, had been eliminated in the first round in its last six trips, and hadnt advanced to the second round since 2000. "Its a great feeling," said fellow guard Wesley Matthews. "Im excited for Portland, of course excited for us. The grind of the season: Youre a competitor, you want to win, you want to play, you want to advance, you want to be a champion. ... Its unbelievable." Dwight Howard made four consecutive free throws to tie the game at 91 before making a bank shot that put Houston ahead with 3:04 to go. Robin Lopez scored on a tip shot to give the Blazers a 94-93 lead with 2:15 left, setting up a wild finish. Howards layup and foul shot put the Rockets back up 96-94 before Nicolas Batums fadeaway jumper tied it again with 39.9 seconds left. Chandler Parsons scored on a reverse layup with 0.9 seconds left to give Houston the lead. Lillard prevented the series from going back to Houston with his 3-pointer as time ran out. He finished with 25 points. The Trail Blazers said Lillard is the first player to make a buzzer-beating shot to win a playoff series since John Stocktons 3 that led Utah over Houston in 1997s Western Conference finals, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. "He made a hell of a shot," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said of Lillard. Portland will face the winner of the series between San Antonio and Dallas. The Mavericks forced a deciding Game 7 with a 113-111 victory over the Spurs on Friday night. There are five first-round playoff series that have gone to seven games. LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers with 30 points and 13 rebounds. He averaged 29.8 points during the series. After losing the opening two games in Houston, then claiming one of a pair in Portland, the Rockets staved off elimination with a 108-98 victory on Wednesday night to narrow Portlands advantage in the series to 3-2. Howard had 22 points and 14 rebounds, and Jeremy Lin redeemed himself from a poor performance in Game 4 with 21 points off the bench. James Harden led the Rockets on Friday night with 34 points. Howard had 26 points and 11 rebounds as Houston -- which earned the nickname "Clutch City" back in the mid-1990s when the team won back-to-back NBA championships -- failed to become the ninth team to come back from a 3-1 deficit in a best-of-seven playoff series and advance. "It hurts," Howard said. "When you put everything youve got on the floor and somebody hits you with a dagger like that, its a tough pill to swallow." After Lillards 3, Howard went over to congratulate his friend and told him he was proud of him and to go win the title. Aldridge helped the Blazers steal the first two games in Houston, scoring 46 points in a 122-120 overtime Game 1 win, then 43 in a 112-105 victory. The Rockets claimed the first of two in Portland, 121-116 in overtime, led by Harden with 37 points. The series third OT game ended in a 123-120 Blazers win. Aldridge gave the Rockets credit for making the Blazers better. "We felt like they definitely helped us grow. Were so young in the playoffs, but they definitely helped us grow and we feel we should be better for the next round," Aldridge said. "Were happy now, but were not satisfied." NOTES: The Blazers honoured former coach Jack Ramsay, who led the team to its lone NBA championship in 1977, in a moving pregame ceremony. Ramsay died Monday after a long battle with cancer in Florida. ... A fan at the game held a sign reading: "Play like its 1977." ... Lillard has multiple 3-pointers in six straight playoff games, a franchise record. ... It was the first time that the Blazers had defeated Houston in the post-season after three previous meetings. Kerryon Johnson Lions Jersey . - Jordan Addesis shootout goal helped the Plymouth Whalers to a 3-2 win over the Sault Ste. T.J. Hockenson Youth Jersey . -- Former Penn State coach Joe Paterno was admitted to the hospital Friday for observation due to minor complications from cancer treatments, his family said. http://www.shopdetroitlionsnfl.com/lions-kenny-golladay-black-jersey/ . Assistant coach Glen Gulutzan said Thursday that Edler, who played Tuesday in Nashville, is out indefinitely. Kenny Golladay Youth Jersey . Amid a rain of confetti, Shabazz Napier basked in the celebration on the court after being named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four following the 60-54 win over Kentucky. Kerryon Johnson Youth Jersey . Ferrer will play Mikhail Youzhny on Sunday after he defeated Dmitry Tursunov 6-2, 6-4 in an all-Russian semifinal. "Youzhny is a good player," Ferrer said.Uniondale, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Josh Bailey scored the winner in the shootout as the New York Islanders grabbed a 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils on Monday. In the fifth round, Bailey was able to sneak a low shot between the pads of Keith Kinkaid, and Jacob Josefson missed the net on New Jerseys last chance. Theyre fun and you have to go out there and enjoy it, said Bailey about shootouts. You cant be nervous when you go out there so you just have to embrace the moment and enjoy it. Bailey and Matt Martin each had a goal, while Jaroslav Halak stopped 26 shots for the Islanders, who have won their past two games. Marek Zidlicky and Scott Gomez each had a goal and an assist for the Devils, who have dropped their past four games. Kinkaid stopped 31 shots in the loss. Well we got one point so start there and go home, said Gomez. Its no reason to get frustrated because we played well enough. Give them credit, they came back and its a good club over there. The Devils drew first blood on the power play at 12:15 of the first after Gomez sent a pass from the right point to the high slot where Zidlicky one- timed a blast into the net.dddddddddddd Just over three minutes later, New Jersey took a 2-0 lead as Gomez whipped the puck out front from the right boards and it hit off the skate of Lubomir Visnovsky and went into the net. The only goal of the second period went to New York when Ryan Strome sent a backhand pass from behind the left of the net to the slot where Bailey was able to wrist it into the left corner of the net at 1:51. New York tied the game just past the midway point of the third as Casey Cizikas sent a saucer pass down the right wing for Martin, who skated to the circle and beat Kinkaid with a heavy wrister. Game Notes New Jersey forward Jaromir Jagr had two assists and moved past Steve Yzerman for sole possession of seventh all time with 1,065 helpers. Adam Oates is sixth with 1,079 ... New York plays in Detroit on Friday ... New Jersey hosts Ottawa on Wednesday ... The Devils were 1-for-2 on the power play, while the Islanders were 0-for-3. ' ' '