Deandre Ayton had an incredible performance, scoring 24 points on 11-of-12 shooting, leading the Portland Trail Blazers to a 127-108 win over the Phoenix Suns on Saturday night. This was the first of two games between the teams in three days.
Jerami Grant contributed 20 points for the Blazers, who built a lead as large as 27 points. This win marked their third consecutive victory and seventh in their last eight games.
Toumani Camara added 18 points, 10 rebounds, and four steals. Anfernee Simons scored 16 points and dished out seven assists, while Shaedon Sharpe, coming off the bench, also added 16 points. Scoot Henderson provided 13 points and nine assists, and Deni Avdija chipped in with 10 points.
For the Suns, Devin Booker led the way with 37 points, marking his second straight game with 30 or more. Kevin Durant added 22 points, continuing his streak of 24 out of 25 games with 20 or more points.
The game saw the Blazers shooting 51.7 percent from the field and hitting 9 of 31 from three-point range. The Suns shot 45.2 percent and went 10 for 33 from beyond the arc. Bradley Beal came off the bench to score 13 points for Phoenix.
The Suns were trailing by 10 points late in the third quarter after Durant hit a three-pointer, but the Blazers quickly responded with an 8-0 run. Camara and Sharpe each nailed a three-pointer, and Camara added a fast-break dunk off a steal to extend the lead to 82-64 with 5:01 remaining in the quarter.
Ayton’s jumper extended the lead to 20 points, and Portland entered the fourth quarter with a 98-79 advantage.
Phoenix made a brief push, cutting the lead to 15 with 6:25 left in the game after a basket from Durant. But Ayton sealed the victory, scoring back-to-back baskets to give Portland a 114-94 lead, forcing the Suns to pull Booker and Durant from the game.
Simons led the charge in the first half with 14 points, helping the Blazers go into the break with a 61-46 lead. Durant had 13 points in the first half for Phoenix. Portland finished the half with a 10-0 run after leading by just five points.
