The 2013 NBA Rookie of the Year Damian Lillard ignited a second quarter explosion to pace the rising Portland Trail Blazers to make mince of the "broken" Houston Rockets with a 116-103 victory at the Moda Center on Wednesday night.

"We're broken. It's that simple," Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. "Right now we are a broken team. It's easy to see. It's a fragmented bunch. You can't win that way."

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Lillard finished the game with a team-high 31 points to go along with 9 assists, 3 rebounds and 3 steals, as he led the Blazers to their 27^th win of the season with the same number of losses.

Maurice Harkless registered his season high of 19 points and 13 rebounds, while CJ McCollum and Meyers Leonard chipped in 14 points apiece. Gerald Henderson and Al-Farouq Aminu added 13 and 11 points respectively for the Trail Blazers, who had won three in a row and went 8-2 in the last 10 games they played.

Portland was able to tie with the Northwest Division team Utah Jazz for seventh spot of the highly competitive Western Conference, while the two-time NBA champions Southwest Division team Houston Rockets suffered their 28^th loss in 55 games played this season - putting them out of the playoff position.

The Rockets have lost three consecutive games and bowed down to their opponents six times in its last ten games played. Houston is 11-15 on road and 16-13 at home this season.

"It's frustrating that we're broken," James Harden, who tops all scorers with a game high 34 points with 11 assists and 9 rebounds, said.

"We're just not willing to help each other out. Talking ain't gonna get it done."

Dwight Howard, the 2010 NBA rebounds and blocks leader, registered 28 points, 13 rebounds with 2 assists and 1 shot block for the Rockets.

The Trail Blazers will be hosting the defending NBA champions and current league leader Golden States Warriors, while the Rockets will be visiting the Phoenix Suns on February 19.

TagsJames Harden, damian lillard, Dwight Howard, Portland Trail Blazers, houston rockets