Rockets 108, Trail Blazers 98: Dwight Howard had 22 points and 14 rebounds and Jeremy Lin scored 21 points off the bench as host Houston remained alive in the first-round Western Conference series by sliding past Portland.

Chandler Parsons scored 20 points and James Harden added 17 as the fourth-seeded Rockets trimmed the Trail Blazers’ lead to 3-2. Omer Asik contributed 10 points and 15 rebounds before fouling out for Houston, which will try to tie the best-of-seven series Friday in Portland.

Wesley Matthews scored 27 points and Damian Lillard had 26 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and four steals for fifth-seeded Portland. Robin Lopez added 17 points and eight rebounds and Nicolas Batum scored 15 points.

The Rockets led by nine points early in the fourth quarter before Portland made a run and pulled within 100-98 on Lillard’s driving hoop with 3:39 remaining. The Trail Blazers didn’t score again as Harden drained a 3-pointer and had six overall during a game-ending 8-0 surge.

Houston led by as many 17 in the first half before settling for a 56-48 advantage at the break. Matthews scored 18 points in the third quarter to keep Portland within range as the Rockets took an 82-77 lead into the final stanza.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Houston dominated the interior, posting a 48-34 rebounding advantage and a 60-40 edge in points in the paint. … Trail Blazers F LaMarcus Aldridge had just eight points on 3-of-12 shooting after averaging 44.5 points in the two previous games played in Houston. … Rockets G Patrick Beverley (illness) played just 21 minutes and had five points.