d reign for her. In honesty, her character works much better as a heel, as evidenced by her stellar NXT run

PORTLAND, Ore. -- James Harden easily exposed Portlands struggles on defense.Harden had 38 points and 10 assists for his seventh consecutive double-double, and the Houston Rockets beat the Trail Blazers 130-114 on Sunday night. It was his 14th double-double this season.His mentality?Make the right play, thats all, he said.As a point guard Im going to see a lot of defenses, so Ive just got to figure out what theyre doing and how to attack it and just go from there.Eric Gordon added 26 points including six 3-pointers for the Rockets, who have made at least 10 3-pointers in 16 straight games to match the NBA record set by the Warriors and Cavaliers last season. They finished the night with 17.Gordons 3-pointer gave the Rockets a 104-95 lead with just over 10 minutes left in the game. Damian Lillards 3-pointer and Mason Plumlees reverse layup closed the gap to 104-100, but the Blazers couldnt get closer and Trevor Ariza hit a 3 from the corner to put the Rockets up 111-100.CJ McCollum scored 28 points and Lillard had 27 for the Blazers, who have lost six of their last eight games. Portland gave up 30 or more points to the Rockets in each quarter.Theyre a difficult team to guard, Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. I think James does a great job of playing the game and figuring out what needs to be done.The Rockets attempted an NBA-record 50 3-pointers and made 21 in a 117-104 victory at Sacramento on Friday night to open a five-game road trip. Harden had 23 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.First-year Houston coach Mike DAntoni said he feels like the Rockets are finding a groove in his system.I think theyre getting more comfortable with how were doing things. Theyre moving the ball a little better, DAntoni said. We can still do better.The Blazers beat New Orleans 119-104 at home on Friday night after struggling on a 1-4 road trip. Portland is missing starting forward Al-Farouq Aminu, who has been sidelined for more than two weeks with a calf injury. Ed Davis started in his place against the Rockets.Lillard and McCollum combined for 20 points as the teams finished the first quarter knotted at 35. The Rockets went on a 9-0 run late in the second and led 65-62 at the half, paced by Hardens 21 points.Ryan Anderson hit a 3-pointer that made it 83-75 for the Rockets, who led by as many as 10 points in the third quarter. The Blazers pressured, coming within 94-93 late after Lillard made a pair of free throws.Harden finished with five 3-pointers.Right now were not getting it done on the defensive end, Lillard said. I think thats what it comes down to. You look at the Cleveland game, we scored 120-something points and we lose. Thats a lot of points to score and not win the game. Tonight we had 114 and we lose. Obviously were capable of scoring, were going to put points on the board, but weve got to find a way to come up with more stops and be more consistent.TIP-INSRockets: Rookie Kyle Wiltjer has been traveling with the Rockets, although he hasnt played. Wiltjer, who went undrafted out of Gonzaga, is a Portland native and played for Jesuit High School, helping the team to three straight Oregon state championships.Trail Blazers: Through its first 19 games, Portland has made more than 200 3-pointers, more than any Blazers team in franchise history. The Blazers have 209 total.SCORING IS NOT THE ISSUEPortland has scored at least 100 points in 17 of 19 games this season.GORDONS GAMEGordon was just one off his season high for points.I just got off to a great start, he said. I know when I get off to a great start everything comes easier and more comfortable We just played well as a team, we moved the ball and did everything we needed to do to win.UP NEXTRockets: Houston visits the Jazz on Tuesday.Trail Blazers: Portland hosts the Pacers and former Blazers coach Nate McMillan on Wednesday. NMD Shoes Wholesale . Just as Montreal was settling into the first full working week of a new year, the Impact announced the appointment of their new head coach. NMD Buy Australia . The Croatian served 21 aces and hit 42 winners against Sijsling, who double-faulted to give Cilic a 4-3 lead in the deciding set. "All the players, they know me and they were really happy to see me and they were really happy that this is over for me," Cilic said. http://www.nmdaustraliasale.com/ . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. Adidas NMD Clearance . The deal is pending a physical, assistant general manager Bobby Evans said. Traded from Seattle to Baltimore on Aug. 30, Morse also can play first base and right field to give manager Bruce Bochy some flexibility in writing his lineup. NMD Human Race Australia .Y. -- Paul Byron and Matt Stajan scored as the Calgary Flames started a five-game road trip with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon. There have been a number of historic moments in the WWEs womens division over the past few years, from tremendous matches like Bayley versus Sasha Banks at NXT TakeOver, the womens triple-threat for the rebranded WWE womens championship at WrestleMania, to subtler milestones like development of viable womens divisions on both Raw and SmackDown Live and the placement of womens matches on weekly shows and pay-per-views.Things reached an entirely different level at the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view, though, as Banks and Charlotte Flair not only had the first womens match inside of a cell, in a match for the Raw womens championship, but they did it in the final match of the night -- the traditional main event spot on the show.WWE fans have recognized just how much Banks and Flair have done as trailblazers, proving they merit everything theyve gotten, and the six-member panel that determines the ESPN WWE Power Rankings is on the same page. Those writers -- Arash Markazi, Brian Campbell, Peter Rosenberg, Tim Fiorvanti, Nic Atkin and Sean Coyle -- have consistently voted both Flair and Banks higher and higher by the week, and this edition of the Power Rankings is no exception. What is different, however, is that Flair reached two milestones this time around: the third overall spot and her first first-place vote.Heres how the list shook out.Each of the top 10 is shown by rank (with first place votes received), along with how much theyve moved up or down from the most recent previous edition of the ESPN WWE Power Rankings.Week after week, Styles keeps plugging along as the current top worker in the company by turning in one strong match after another in defense of his WWE world championship. And while his current role as heel isnt my favorite for his character (without the presence of?Luke Gallows?and?Karl Anderson?by his side), its still working. Incredibly,?the?addition of an unlikely foil in?James Ellsworth?is helping Styles really flex his bad guy muscles. (Campbell)Over the past fortnight, Owens has finally started to showcase the monster heel side of his character that made him so effective in NXT (and in his pre-WWE career). He got things rolling with a pop-up powerbomb to Seth Rollins on the ring apron -- the move he famously used to take out his storyline best friend?Sami Zayn?in a memorable heel turn on his?NXT debut. Then came a bruising performance coupled with excellent psychology inside Hell in a Cell, as he and Rollins stole the show in one of the more memorable Cell bouts of the last 15 years. (Atkin)With apologies to the late, great Owen Hart, Im going to steal his catchphrase: Enough is enough. Why should Flair be lower than number one? She regained the title in yet another brilliant pay-per-view performance inside Hell in a Cell and now stands as the three-time WWE Raw womens champion. While Flair and Sasha Banks seem destined to feud for a long, long time, lets hope that itll soon be time for a something new -- a chance to see if Flair can make?Bayley?look big time. (Rosenberg)If this seems like an unfair fall for the former No. 1 in the power rankings, it probably is. After a hot-and-cold rivalry over the last couple of months, Rollins and Owens had a tremendous match inside Hell in a Cell. Rollins showed just how strong he is by lifting Owens for an incredible toss through two tables, and he proved just how effective he can be against almost any kind of opponent -- and especially against a top-notch competitor like Owens. His move towards pairing up with Reigns could hopefully move Rollins towards his much more natural (and effective) heelish tendencies as we move closer and closer to the road to Wrestlemania. (Fiorvanti)As The List of Jericho grows, so does Jerichos role in the main event pictture on RAW.dddddddddddd It seems outrageous to say this about such a decorated superstar, but in Jerichos 17 years with the WWE, his value might be higher now than it has ever been -- and hes already a superstar who has held six world championships, a record nine Intercontinental championships and headlined a WrestleMania. Even when Jericho is not officially part of a match, as was the case at Hell in a Cell, he still makes an impact. Jericho is an entertainer in every sense of the word, and the future Hall of Famer is one of the primary reasons to tune in on Monday nights. (Coyle)Im a little bit torn here. On the one hand, I absolutely loathed that he escaped everything that?Rusev?had to throw at him at Hell in a Cell, including a brutal-looking, chain-enhanced Accolade. The way hes been booked as an almost?John Cena-level superman is doing him no favors either. Those points aside, its not Reigns fault -- he doesnt write the?stories, he just goes out there and executes them to the best of his abilities. In that respect, what hes doing is still great. (Rosenberg)Ambrose undeniably slid after losing the WWE world championship, but the tail end of the multiway rivalry between himself, Styles and Cena and everything that followed has breathed new life into Ambroses career. We likely have at least a few more weeks of Ambrose dealing with Styles and the monster he created in Ellsworth, which should carry him through Survivor Series and his scheduled title match at TLC. Ambrose has likely benefited just as much as Styles has from an unlikely foil in Ellsworth, as its allowed him to show both his comedic side and his crazy edge in a realistic way. (Fiorvanti)This is the best stretch of Mizs career, from his look, to his commanding presence on the microphone. While its something we wouldnt have said (or believed) even one year ago, The Miz has worked himself into a position where an invitation back into the main event title picture would be well-received and well-earned. Hes the best heel talker that SmackDown Live currently has on its roster, and arguably the best one overall in the company at this moment. (Campbell)It is not entirely her fault, but there must be a reason WWE is reluctant to keep the Raw womens title on Banks. She has failed to convince as a babyface, and despite some stellar efforts in the ring, like her incredible showing in a historic Hell in a Cell match, both of her title runs have been brief. Banks has failed to defend the title on both occasions she defended it on pay-per-view, and with Flair back in the saddle as champion it might be a little while before we see a third reign for her. In honesty, her character works much better as a heel, as evidenced by her stellar NXT run when she really was The Boss -- and its high time to give her the freedom to express herself. A heel turn on Bayley could set the womens division alight on Raw. (Atkin)It wasnt too long ago that hope seemed lost for Ziggler, despite his immense talent. He was stuck in a feud with?Baron Corbin?for much of the summer, and began to resurface after the?brand split, but never really caught fire. Its amazing what one effective feud can do to take a superstar to that next level. His chemistry with The Miz, along with his passionate, fiery promos, has elevated Ziggler and increased his value to the SmackDown Live brand. Where he goes from here remains to be seen, but Ziggler is in a better place right now than he has been in at any point since he cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase the night after WrestleMania 29 in 2013. (Coyle)Dropped from rankings:?NoneHonorable mention:?Rusev,?Ellsworth ' ' '