The Trail Blazers got a big win Tuesday, beating the Thunder 103-93 in Oklahoma City.

And while there was a lot of talk about the Blazers moving to the top of the Western Conference, of their rugged defensive play and of making a strong road statement, there was one other development that might be easy to take for granted.

LaMarcus Aldridge looked like his old self -- maybe even a more well-rounded version.

Aldridge scored a season-high 30 points and did so in a manner that worked well against the Thunder, who have good defenders and depth in the post. And he did so not by just posting up in the low block, but by moving around and scoring in a variety of ways -- showing much of his vast repertoire.

Aldridge certainly attacked the basket, resulting in 12 free throw attempts (he made 10), twice as many as he shot in any previous game this season. Two of his foul-line trips were the result of fouls drawn on Ibaka, who blocked more shots than any player in the league last season but was limited to 17 minutes Tuesday.

Tuesday's game also showed Aldridge's emerging chemistry with new point guard Raymond Felton. Felton has talked about trying to develop a pick-and-roll magic with Aldridge similar to the one he had with Amare Stoudemire last season with the Knicks. We're starting to see that.

Of Aldridge's 10 made baskets, four came on assists by Felton, whose speed seems to mesh well with Aldridge's own light feet. The four scores showed the variety of ways they can create baskets:

In the first quarter, Felton found Aldridge for a reverse layup on a pick-and-roll.

In the second, Felton beat his man off the dribble, got into the lane, drew two defenders, and dropped the ball to Aldridge for a dunk.

In the third, Felton pushed the ball up after a missed Thunder shot, paused a moment, attacked the basket and found a streaking Aldridge for a dunk.

In the fourth, Felton and Aldridge executed a high pick-and-pop, with Felton finding Aldridge for a 19-foot jumper.

On NBA-TV, when the network showed highlights of the game, commentator Steve Smith summed things up this way: "You know what, I'm loving Raymond Felton. Guess what? He knows where his bread is buttered. He's going right to LaMarcus Aldridge."

Aldridge also scored on three jumpers, a beautiful left spin in the post against Ibaka, a putback dunk and an alley-oop dunk from center Marcus Camby. The game was a real tour-de-force for Aldridge.

Trail Blazers win 103-93 over Thunder 7 Gallery: Trail Blazers win 103-93 over Thunder

There are games in which Aldridge's post play can become the first option, where the Blazers dump the ball into him, and he either tries to score or pass out of a double-team.

But in this season's faster-paced style with Felton, Aldridge's versatility can really shine, and we saw a full sample of that against a very good team Tuesday.

Other tidbits, notes and links from Tuesday's game:

• The Blazers, while still not fully showing what they are capable of,

with the win, The Oregonian's Joe Freeman reports.

• Gerald Wallace, who did not score in the Blazers' dreadful loss against the Clippers on Sunday, had 13 points and 10 rebounds. And while he was only 4 for 14 from the field, Wallace made OKC star Kevin Durant work to try to defend him by posting him up.

Durant, for all his accolades and vast skills, just does not have the strength to keep Wallace from getting deep in the post. That might be the biggest difference between Durant and the season's other early MVP candidate, LeBron James, who is very strong.

Durant had 19 points but shot 8 for 26 as Wallace and Nicolas Batum did a superb tandem defensive job on him. I doubt there's another team in the NBA with that kind of quality depth at small forward.

• The Blazers stayed at a supposedly haunted hotel, but

with the win, the O's Jason Quick writes.

• There are no excuses in sports, but there are circumstances that certainly did not help the Thunder. For one thing,

as they played their seventh game in 10 days, and played their third back-to-back, with all three coming in two different cities.

The Blazers, on the other hand, were playing their fifth game and have played just one back-to-back, with both games in Portland. Typically, though, playing at home makes up for schedule imbalances.

The teams next play Feb. 6 in Portland, with both teams not in back-to-backs then.

• Also working against the Thunder -- they

, who stayed home with the flu, the Oklahoman reports. Now it's true that a better player, James Harden, started for Sefolosha and led the Thunder with 23 points and six assists.

But by starting Harden, OKC struggled to score off the bench. The Blazers' reserves outscored the Thunder's 25-14.

• Darnell Mayberry has the Oklahoman's game story, and he focuses on

of Russell Westbrook and Durant. Good quote from reserve post Nick Collison on Felton:

"He was attacking and coming off that ball screen very hard and dragging out the big ... He was coming at us all night. We weren't getting there early enough and we weren't getting over the screens well enough to get back to him."

• The Blazers return to the Rose Garden on Thursday to play the Lakers, who improved to 4-3 with a

last night. The Lakers are getting big numbers from center Andrew Bynum, who in three games after returning from a suspension, is averaging 22.7 points, 17.0 rebounds and shooting 62.2 percent from the field.

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