For the first time in 12 years, the Houston Rockets advanced in the NBA playoffs.

Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge each scored 25 points, and the Portland Trail Blazers staved off elimination in the playoffs with an 88-77 victory over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night.

Youth and inexperience are catching up with the Portland Trail Blazers.

The Houston Rockets are one win away from finally escaping the first round.

Yao Ming has taken only 13 shots in the last two games of Houston’s first-round series against Portland. That’s OK with him.

Luis Scola scored 19 points, Houston’s defense bottled up Brandon Roy, and the Rockets beat the Portland Trail Blazers 86-83 on Friday night to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series.

The Houston Rockets think they have two of the NBA’s top 1-on-1 defenders in Shane Battier and Ron Artest. They know they’ll have to do a better job after neither could handle Brandon Roy in Game 2.

Brandon Roy scored 42 points and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Houston Rockets 107-103 on Tuesday night to even their playoff seires at one game apiece.

The warm applause that greeted former Oregon star Aaron Brooks at the Rose Garden in the first game of the playoff series between the Houston Rockets and the Portland Trail Blazers won’t likely be repeated.

Yao Ming scored 24 points, all in the first half, and the Houston Rockets spoiled Portland’s back-in-the playoffs euphoria with a 108-81 victory over the Trail Blazers in the opener of their first-round series Saturday night.