PORTLAND, Ore. – Deandre Ayton had 26 points and nine rebounds to lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a 115-106 victory over the Sacramento Kings in an NBA Cup game on Friday night.

Anfernee Simons contributed 21 points and nine assists and Deni Avdija had 20 points and nine rebounds for the Blazers. Dalano Banton scored 17 goals off the bench and also had five steals, the most of his career.

Malik Monk led the Kings with 29 points off the bench. De’Aaron Fox added 22 points and Domantas Sabonis had 21.

With the win, the Blazers are now 2-1 in Group A of the Western Conference behind the Rockets, who lead the group at 3-0, and remain in contention to advance after the Lakers lost 101-93 to the Thunder on Friday have. The Kings are 0-3 in the NBA Cup.

Takeaways

Kings: Sacramento lost despite attempting five more three-pointers and 13 more free throws than Portland.

Blazers: It was a balanced performance for Portland, with six players, including all five starters, scoring in double figures.

Key moment

A 9-2 run with five minutes left in the second quarter gave Portland the lead and left Sacramento playing from behind for the rest of the game.

Key statistics

The Blazers outscored the Kings in the paint 64-34.

Next

The Kings return home to face the Spurs on Saturday, while the Blazers play the Mavericks at home on the same day.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba