PORTLAND, Ore. - Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge said Thursday that he tore a ligament in his left thumb that will require surgery and that he could be out six to eight weeks.The three-time All-Star spoke before Portlands game against the Celtics. The Blazers fell to Boston 90-89.Aldridge hurt his thumb when his hand came down on the knee of Sacramentos DeMarcus Cousins in the second quarter of the Blazers 98-95 victory over the Kings on Monday night.Ive definitely sprained my thumb a few times, but this was on a different level, he said. I couldnt even move it.The 6-foot-11 power forward had X-rays immediately following the injury but they were inconclusive. An MRI early Thursday revealed a radial collateral ligament tear.Aldridge leads Portland with averages of 23.5 points and 10.4 rebounds and 1.18 blocks per game. Hes one of just three NBA players averaging at least 23 points and 10 rebounds.That was the last thing I wanted to hear, Blazers guard Damian Lillard said about Aldridges injury. Were an NBA team, its not like we can stop our schedule until he gets healthy. We just gotta keep on moving forward and try to win games.The injury is a big blow to the Blazers, who were already dealing with a depleted front line. Center Robin Lopez is out with a fractured right hand and centre Joel Freeland is sidelined with a right shoulder strain.Starting small forward Nicolas Batum left Thursday nights game against the Celtics after he aggravated a wrist injury that had been bothering him. Batum said afterward he was scheduled to have an MRI.With Thursdays loss, Portland is 31-13 and sitting in third place in the Western Conference, but the Blazers have lost five of six.Its tough, weve been in a pretty good rhythm most of the season, Aldridge said. We have a lot of guys here who can step up and play better, and make plays. So I think the team shouldnt stall, were going to get guys back soon, so that should be good for us.Aldridge said he will have surgery within the week. He was wearing a black sleeve on his wrist and thumb when he spoke to reporters in the Blazers locker room.He said he discussed with the doctors whether he could play with it, but ultimately it was decided that he should have the surgery.They didnt feel the risk was going to be worth the reward, he said. It could be worse on the back end, or I could even wait two weeks and try to play and not end up playing anyways. So we just felt like, to us, the right thing to do is take care of it now.In his ninth NBA season, all with Portland, Aldridge recently moved into second on the franchise list for both points (11,782) and rebounds (5,095). He trails only Clyde Drexler with 18,050 points and 5,339 rebounds.Weve got to hold the fort down, Portland guard Wesley Matthews said. Weve got to figure it out, weve got to find ways to win and continue to play basketball the right way. Its gotten us 31 wins. Saucony Scontate . Watching them over the past year - and in some cases, two years - has given us a starting point for this seasons Craigs List. Saucony Outlet Italia . A groundswell for raising the number of playoff qualifiers to seven in each conference figures to get plenty of support from the 32 owners. Most notably, Arizonas Bill Bidwill, who saw his Cardinals go 10-6 and not get in, while Green Bay (8-7-1) qualified by winning the NFC North. http://www.sauconyscontate.it/. Sure, Josh Browns 45-yard field goal on the third drive of overtime lifted the New York Giants to a 23-20 win over Detroit on Sunday. But the Lions (7-8) dropped themselves out of the NFC North race by losing five of their last six games, blowing fourth-quarter leads in each setback. Scarpe Saucony Offerta . Teams one through twenty competing in Englands top flight are each fatally flawed. A wide-open, highly competitive and mistake-filled season has followed. Saucony Saldi Online . The Mavericks avoided a season sweep by the Nuggets, who ran away with a win in Denver two weeks ago to hand Dallas its longest losing streak at three games. Dallas (42-28) got a boost in the playoff race when Miami rallied from seven down in the last 3 1/2 minutes to beat Memphis 91-86 Friday night.Los Angeles, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Kyle Lowry had 25 points, seven assists and three steals as the Toronto Raptors defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 110-98 on Saturday afternoon. Jonas Valanciunas posted 22 points and 11 rebounds while Amir Johnson snatched 12 boards for the Raptors, who have won seven of their last eight games. J.J. Redick netted 23 points, Blake Griffin added 22 points, six rebounds and five assists and DeAndre Jordan pulled down 20 boards for Los Angeles, which has dropped four of its last six games. Final Score: Orlando 102, Charlotte 94 Charlotte, NC (SportsNetwork.com) - Nikola Vucevic scored 22 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic overcame Kemba Walkers career-high scoring effort to down the Charlotte Hornets, 102-94, in a matchup of the bottom two teams in the Southeast Division. The Magic committed only six turnovers and had six players finish in double figures to win for just the third time in their last 10 games. Tobias Harris hit a key 3-pointer and netted 21 points, Victor Oladipo added 13 and Elfrid Payton filled his stat line with 11 points, eight assists and seven boards. Kemba Walker exploded for 35 of his 42 points after halftime, but Charlotte still dropped its second straight on the heels of a four-game winning streak. Final Score: Washington 101, Boston 88 Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Paul Pierce netted 14 of his 17 points against his former team in the first half and the Washington Wizards defeated the Boston Celtics, 101-88, on Saturday night. Kris Humphries posted 18 points and nine rebounds off the bench, while John Wall added 12 points and seven assists for the Wizards, who have won eight of their last 10 games. Jeff Green provided a game-high 23 points for Boston, which has dropped four straight games. Final Score: Memphis 103, Miami 95 Miami, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - Mike Conley scored 24 points and led the Memphis Grizzlies to a 103-95 win over the Miami Heat on Saturday. Marc Gasol had a productive game, scoring 22 points with 10 rebounds to help the Grizzlies snap a season-high four-game losing streak. Beno Udrih and Tayshaun Prince went for 11 and 10 points, respectively, for Memphis, which played without Zach Randolph (knee) for a fourth straight game. Dwyane Wade, coming off a 31-point outing on Christmas Day in a win against LeBron James and the Cavs, scored 25 points with seven assists. Danny Granger tallied 18 points off the bench and Luol Deng added 16 for the Heat, who have lost two of their last three and have not won back-to-back games since Nov. 22-23. Final Score: Indiana 110, Brooklyn 85 Brooklyn, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - David West and the Indiana Pacers took control in the second half and downed the cold-shooting Brooklyn Nets, 110-85, at Barclays Center. Seven Indiana players scored in double figures and the team shot 58.1 percent from the field while posting a 60-38 advantage in the second half. West scored all but two of his 17 points after halftime, and Rodney Stuckey put together a terrific all-around effort with 20 points, eight assists, six rebounds and four steals in the lopsided win. C.J. Watson finished with 17 points while Luis Scola and Chris Copeland contributed 13 and 12 points, respectively, off the bench for the Pacers, who have won three of four following a 1-10 stretch. Jarrett Jack netted 22 points, but the Nets shot just 36.4 percent from the field and had their three-game winning streak come to a screeching halt. Final Score: Chicago 107, New Orleans 100 Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.ddddddddddddcom) - Jimmy Butler scored 33 points, and the Chicago Bulls extended their season-high winning streak to six games by topping New Orleans, 107-100, at the United Center. Derrick Rose added 19 points, while Aaron Brooks scored 13, and Taj Gibson tallied 12 with 10 rebounds. Chicago native Anthony Davis had 29 points to pace the Pelicans, who failed to build on a 97-90 home win over San Antonio Friday night. Tyreke Evans scored 26 and Jrue Holiday notched 19 with seven assists. Final Score: Atlanta 90, Milwaukee 85 Milwaukee, WI (SportsNetwork.com) - Jeff Teague had 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists as the Atlanta Hawks defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 90-85 on Saturday night. Al Horford posted 20 points and nine rebounds, while Paul Millsap added 17 points and eight boards for the Hawks, who have won six of their last seven games. Khris Middleton tallied 21 points and Zaza Pachulia provided 11 points and 15 boards for Milwaukee, which has dropped three of its last four games. Final Score: Utah 88, Philadelphia 71 Salt Lake City, UT (SportsNetwork.com) - Derrick Favors scored 17 points and anchored Utahs best defensive effort of the season, as the Jazz clipped the Philadelphia 76ers 88-71 on Saturday. Favors pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds and blocked five shots and Trey Burke dropped 17 points for the suddenly-hot Jazz, who have won four of five on the heels of a 1-12 stretch. Gordon Hayward had 15 points, Enes Kanter tallied 10 points and 10 rebounds and Trevor Booker gave 14 points off the bench in Utahs return to EnergySolutions Arena following a six-game road trip. Tony Wroten paced Philadelphia with 20 points and Robert Covington scored 17 in defeat. Michael Carter-Williams shot 2-of-20 and committed a game-high six turnovers. Final Score: Sacramento 135, New York 129 (OT) Sacramento, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - DeMarcus Cousins scored nine of his season-high 39 points in overtime, and the Sacramento Kings handed the New York Knicks a seventh consecutive loss in Saturdays 135-129 victory. Cousins, who missed Fridays loss to the Suns with a stomach virus, did not look 100-percent physically but stepped up in crunch time. He went 14-of-27 from the floor and added 11 rebounds and four assists. Rudy Gay added 29 points and Darren Collison donated 27 with 10 assists for the Kings, who had dropped seven of eight coming in. Carmelo Anthony paced the Knicks with 36 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, but it was not enough as New York fell to 2-14 on the road. Cole Aldrich scored a career-high 18 points before fouling out in overtime, while Tim Hardaway Jr. netted 19 for New York, which never led in regulation but scored nine of the final 11 points to force OT. Final Score: Golden State 110, Minnesota 97 Oakland, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Stephen Curry scored 25 points with six assists to lead the Golden State Warriors in a 110-97 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday. Klay Thompson supplied 21 points, while David Lee, Andre Iguodala and Marreese Speights each chipped in with 10 points in the win. Golden State snapped a two-game losing streak after a winless two-game trip through Los Angeles against the Lakers and Clippers. It has won nine straight at Oracle Arena, however. Thaddeus Young paced the scuffling Timberwolves with 17 points and Zach LaVine added 12 points with a career- high 14 assists in Minnesotas eighth straight loss overall and on the road. ' ' '