Portland, Ore. ? When the game was over and the Trail Blazers had avoided another playoff sweep, Portland coach Maurice Cheeks sat alone on the bench grinning ear-to-ear.

The Trail Blazers snapped a 10-game postseason losing streak with a 98-79 victory over the Dallas Mavericks Sunday night.

Cheeks earned his first playoff win as a head coach after six losses.

“You have no idea how important it is to get that victory,” he said.

Without injured stars Scottie Pippen, Derek Anderson and Arvydas Sabonis, the Trail Blazers rallied to send the series back to Dallas for Game 5. Zach Randolph had 25 points and 15 rebounds, while Damon Stoudamire had 17 points and 11 assists.

“What went right? We made shots, and they didn’t make shots,” Cheeks said.

The victory snapped Portland’s 10-game playoff losing streak, which dated to Game 7 of the 2000 Western Conference finals against the Los Angeles Lakers.

But no team ever has come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a seven-game series, and the Mavericks haven’t lost four in a row all season.

Portland forward Ruben Patterson, right, knocks the ball away from Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki in the Blazers' 98-79 victory. The Mavericks lead the series, 3-1, despite the loss Sunday in Portland, Ore.

After trailing 52-49 at the break, the Blazers had a 21-0 run in the third quarter and went on to lead by as many as 24 points.

Randolph tied it at 54 with a layup at 8:52 of the third quarter, and Rasheed Wallace hit a go-ahead three-pointer before Randolph added a jumper to make it 59-54.

Randolph’s slam dunk and layup made it 67-58 before Stoudamire’s fast break layup and free throw put the Blazers ahead 70-58.

The already hurting Blazers got a scare was on their next possession when center Dale Davis was poked in the left eye by Eduardo Najera on a layup. After hitting the foul shot, Davis retreated to the locker room.

He later returned to watch from the bench as the Blazers continued to build on their lead.