Portland, OR (SportsNetwork.com) - Life without Kevin Durant was fine for the Oklahoma City Thunder through three quarters. Then the Portland Trail Blazers got red hot in the fourth. LaMarcus Aldridge had 27 points and the Blazers pulled away for a 106-89 win over the Thunder in the season opener for both teams on Wednesday night. The Thunder led 77-75 after three quarters, but Portland outscored them 31-12 in the final frame. Russell Westbrook, who had 36 points through three, netted just two points on 1-of-6 shooting in the fourth. . -- Officials have approved a deal to build a new $672 million stadium for the Atlanta Braves away from the downtown Atlanta area that has traditionally been its home. . Heather, the first Gaiter to win the award, set a Canadian Inter-university Sport record with 3,132 passing yards in eight league games, an average of 391.5 yards per game. That beat the mark of 3,047 set only one week earlier by Westerns Will Finch, a Hec Crighton finalist. . The D-Backs came into being in 1998 and appear destined to finish second in the AL West after the Tsunami that is the Los Angeles Dodgers swept over them. I thought it might be interesting to see what the D-backs have done over their 16 years compared to what the Blue Jays have done over their past 16 campaigns. . -- Kenneth Faried made a turnaround hook shot over Draymond Green with a half-second remaining, and the Denver Nuggets made Golden State wait at least one more game to secure a playoff berth with a stunning 100-99 win over the Warriors on Thursday night. .S. routed Sweden 7-0 Sunday to win its fourth straight title and seventh overall under-18 world championship. Olson earned his third shutout of the tournament and the Americans allowed only four goals in six games to set an International Ice Hockey Federation under-18 record.Boston Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli announced on Monday that forward Shawn Thornton will not be returning to the team next season. Thornton, 36, joined the Bruins as an unrestricted free agent in 2007 after spending one season with the Anaheim Ducks. In 559 career NHL games, Thornton has compiled 906 penalty minutes while contributing 38 goals and 50 assists. "Today I met with Shawn and I informed him that we will not be re-signing him," said Chiarelli.dddddddddddd "I told him that he was one of the most significant acquisitions that we made." Thornton was selected 190th overall in the seventh round of the 1997 NHL Entry Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs. He made his NHL debut with the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2002-03 season. ' ' '
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