Photo by Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images

Portland Trail Blazers‘ guard Nolan Smith left Tuesday’s 99-88 loss against the Houston Rockets on a stretcher.

Smith, who suffered left ankle injury  Sunday’s win against New Orleans, suffered a concussion after taking a blow to the right side of his head by Houston’s Zoran Dragic that left him lying on the floor with 42.9 seconds remaining in the game.

Smith scored 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting and brought Portland within three in the fourth after trailing by as many as 16.

Damian Lillard picked right up from his 22-point performance on Sunday, notching 27, but committed seven of the Trail Blazers’ 15 turnovers in the loss.

The Rockets pounded Portland on the glass, outrebounding the team 52-31 and 23-8 on the offensive end. Three Houston players hauled in double-digit boards led by Terrence Jones‘  24 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Donatas Motiejunas had 20 points and 12 rebounds and Royce White hauled in 12 rebounds and added six points.

Jeremy Lamb scored 23 points on 8-of-17 shooting for the Rockets.

Portland’s Luke Babbitt had 13 points, but couldn’t find his touch from downtown, making just 3-of-10. Will Barton scored eight points and Meyers Leonard posted eight points and just four rebounds.

The Trail Blazers (1-1) will be back in action against the Atlanta Hawks (1-2) on Thursday. Tipoff starts 3PM.

The San Antonio Spurs clinched the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference after Monday’s 124-89 dismantling of the Portland Trail Blazers at AT&T Center.

Tim Duncan and Danny Green led the Spurs with 18 points as San Antonio (48-16) locked down the West’s top playoff spot and extended its winning streak to eight.

Duncan went 8-of-13 from the floor and played 26 minutes in his return after resting in Sunday’s win over Cleveland.

Green played lights out for the Spurs, shooting a perfect 6-6 from the field, 4-4 from downtown and hitting two free throws. He had 15 first-half points.

Tony Parker scored 13 points, Steve Jackson and Gary Neal had 12 and James Anderson added 11.

San Antonio moved two games ahead of No. 2 Oklahoma City Thunder (46-18) and secured home-court advantage in the playoffs.

Wesley Matthews finished with a game-high 24 points and J.J. Hickson posted his seventh double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Trail Blazers.

Portland (28-37) has now dropped six in a row, matching its Nov. 20-Dec. 3, 2010 performance last season.

San Antonio’s offense, which shot 59% from the floor, was just too much for Portland.  The Spurs pounded the ball inside for a 52-42 edge and held a 31-25 fast-break advantage.

Former Trail Blazer Patty Mills knocked down a pair of threes to give San Antonio a 118-81 lead in the fourth. He ended with nine points.

Raymond Felton returned for Portland after missing three games with family issues and scored 13 points.  Nolan Smith had 10.

Smith’s jumper helped the Trail Blazers go on a 6-2 run in the third to cut a 27-point deficit to 21 before going into the fourth down 91-65.

Tiago Splitter’s layup extended the Spurs’ lead to 19 in the second quarter.

Portland responded with threes from Luke Babbitt and Jonny Flynn to complete a 10-0 run and pull within nine.

But the Spurs turned up the pressure before halftime to extend their lead back 63-41.

Neal hit three free throws at the line after being fouled by Felton on a three-point attempt in the closing seconds of the half.

San Antonio outscored Portland 31-18 in the first quarter.

The Spurs shot 60% in the opening quarter. Neal’s three put San Antonio up by 17 before ending the first with a 13-point lead. Neal suffered shoulder/neck injury in the third after running into a screen by Kurt Thomas.

The Trail Blazers will cap a three-game road trip and finish the season in Utah (34-30) as they take on the Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena on Thursday. Action tips off at 5PM.

The Portland Trail Blazers have dipped on their longest losing streak of the season.

Portland slipped for its fourth consecutive loss after falling 112-91 in its last home game against Utah on Wednesday.

The Trail Blazers will embark on a three-game road trip to finish the season staring in Memphis, where they hope to correct their losing habits against the Grizzlies at FedExForum on Saturday.

Tipoff is at 5PM.

Portland (28-35) will have to do so with limited personnel, again.

LaMarcus Aldridge (right hip), Jamal Crawford (coach’s decision), Ryamond Felton (personal) and Joel Przybilla (bronchitis) did not play in Wednesday’s loss at the Rose Garden.

Wesley Matthews led the team with 21 points, while J.J. Hickson, Luke Babbitt and Nolan Smith had 16 each for the Trail Blazers in the loss.

In Memphis, Portland will have to get by without its starting point guard and center–Felton and Przybilla.

The No. 5 Grizzlies (38-25) are looking to add on to their three-game streak and inch closer to the No.4 Clippers (39-24). Los Angeles is one game ahead of Memphis and also holds tiebreaker between the two teams.

Mike Conley scored 20 points and Zach Randolph added 14 as the Grizzlies topped the Charlotte Bobcats on the road 85-80 on Friday.

Memphis has dominated at home since mid March. The team has won eight straight games in Memphis since March 18 to boast a 23-7 home record.

Despite the Trail Blazers’ 8-22 road record, they have eclipsed the Grizzlies in eight of their last 10 meetings at FedExForum.

Portland has beaten Memphis in threes straight matchups including two home wins this season on Jan. 24 and March 22.

The Trail Blazers marked a 2-0 series lead behind Nicolas Batum’s 24 points with 17 coming in the first half to beat the Grizzlies 97-93 on March 22.

Memphis’ Rudy Gay, averaging 19 points per contest, has scored at least 24 points in six of his last eight games. But against Portland this season, he has only netted 10.5 points.

Gilbert Arenas (finger) and Marc Gasol (knee) are both listed as day-to-day.

Devin Harris scored 27 points and Gordon Hayward had 20 as the Utah Jazz beat the Portland Trail Blazers 112-91 at the Rose Garden Wednesday.

Harris made a career-best six three-pointers and registered 25 of his points in the first half to move the Jazz into the eight playoff spot in the West.

Utah (33-30) jumped Phoenix for the final spot after the Suns loss at home to Oklahoma City later that night.

Alec Burks had 17 and Al Jefferson added 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Jazz, who will play their three remaining games at home.

Portland (28-35) was again without its key players as Jamal Crawford joined LaMarcus Aldridge on the bench.

Wesley Matthews led the Trail Blazers with 21 points. Nolan Smith, Luke Babbitt and J.J. Hickson each had 16. Hickson also grabbed nine rebounds.

Portland has dropped four games, a season worst, before closing out their schedule on the road.

Harris ended the game one point shy of tying his season-best scoring output. He tallied 28 points against Golden State on April 6.

Harris couldn’t miss from long distance in the first half. He hit all six of his threes in the first two quarters and went into the half with a 57-39 lead.

Utah shot 10-of-17 from beyond the arc.

Hasheem Thabeet’s dunk tied the game 28-28 in the second quarter after Portland opened it on a 5-0 run.

The Jazz responded, ending the half on a 20-6 run and later stretching their lead to 27 in the fourth.

Jonny Flynn had 11 points for the Trail Blazers and Nicolas Batum returned after missing Monday’s game, but only produced 2 points.

Matthews was the only Portland players to get it going early. He had 11 in the first but trailed 26-23.

Portland will close its season on a three-game road trip with the team’s first stop in Memphis on Saturday. Tipoff starts at 5pm.

With Portland officially out of the playoff race, all that’s left for the Trail Blazers is to finish the season out on a positive note.

Portland will try to snap a three-game losing streak when it tips off action with the visiting Utah Jazz at the Rose Garden Wednesday. The game starts at 7pm.

After Sunday’s 125-107 loss at Phoenix, the Trail Blazers (28-34) lost any chance to make a late push and get in to the playoffs.

Raymond Felton and Nicolas Batum did not play in Monday’s loss as Portland started its young talent Luke Babbitt and Jonny Flynn.

While J.J. Hickson and Jamal Crawford worked their way to 22 points, Babbitt and Nolan Smith produced career highs of 18 and 14 points.

However, it was the Trail Blazers’ defense that rendered the most points it had given up to an opponent all year.

Portland has lost five of its last six games with only four matchups remaining on its schedule when the Jazz comes to town.

If the Jazz can capitalize on their remaining four games, they could find themselves with a postseason bid.

Utah snapped a two-game skid at home after outlasting the Mavs in triple overtime in Monday’s 123-121 victory.

Three Jazz players recorded over 20 points. Al Jefferson led with 28 and 26 rebounds, Gordon Hayward had 24 and Devin Harris added 23 in the win.

The Jazz (32-30) moved a half-game away from the last playoff seed. The Suns hold the eight spot with Houston right behind them.

Portland is still searching for its first series victory after two meetings with Utah so far. The Trail Blazers will compete in their last home game of the season.

The Jazz claimed a 93-89 home win on Jan 30 and then went on the road to beat Portland 102-97 on April 2.

Utah will be without Raja Bell (left knee), Josh Howard (left knee), C.J. Miles (left gastroc muscle strain) and Earl Watson (right meniscus tear).

LaMarcus Aldridge (right hip), Elliot Williams (left shoulder) and Shawne Williams (left foot) will not play for Portland.