SoCal NBA Preview

Portland (29-28) at LA Clippers (19-35), 7:30 pm

LOS ANGELES (Ticker) - The shorthanded Portland Trail Blazers look to end a three-game losing streak on Wednesday when they pay a visit to the Los Angeles Clippers.

With All-Star Brandon Roy sidelined due to an injured ankle, the Blazers came up on the short end of the stick on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Lakers, 96-83, on Tuesday. "We did some good things the first half of the season, but that's the first half," said Portland coach Nate McMillan, who was ejected in the fourth. "The second half is going to be a huge challenge for us to try and win games going down the stretch and get our team to play well as a unit."

Roy's absence puts a lot of scoring responsibilities on LaMarcus Aldridge, who has scored at least 20 points in four of his last five games on the road. Aldridge should have his way in this one as Clippers big man Chris Kaman looks like he'll miss his third straight game with on-going back issues. Kaman is averaging 16.2 points and 13.3 boards in 46 games this season.

The Clippers suffered their second consecutive blowout on Monday at the hands of the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics, who coasted to a 104-76 win here. Veteran guard Sam Cassell, who was an All-Star in the 2003-04, as reportedly asked the Clippers for a buyout of the remaining two years of his contact.