Deandre Ayton's late hoop boosts Blazers past Clippers

Field Level Media|published: Thu 31st October, 01:27 2024

Oct 30, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Clippers forward Kai Jones (23) gets past Portland Trail Blazers center Donovan Clingan (23) for a dunk in the first half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Anfernee Simons scored 25 points and Deandre Ayton added 15 points and 12 rebounds as the visiting Portland Trail Blazers held on for a 106-105 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday at Inglewood, Calif.

Scoot Henderson had 14 points while Deni Avdija had 13 points and 10 rebounds as the Blazers won for the second time in their past three games and earned their first road victory in two tries.

Ayton scored the go-ahead basket on a jump hook in traffic after an offensive rebound with 1:38 remaining. The Clippers failed to either tie or take the lead on their final four possessions of the game.

Los Angeles' Norman Powell scored 30 points and James Harden added 19 points with 10 assists. Ivica Zubac had 12 rebounds but was held to six points after he averaged 22.7 points over the first three games of the season.

Kevin Porter Jr. scored 10 points for Los Angeles, which fell to 0-2 in the new $2 billion Intuit Dome.

The Clippers grabbed a 10-point lead 7:25 into the game and were up 26-24 after one quarter. The Trail Blazers surged to a 54-43 lead with 1:29 remaining in the first half before the Clippers closed the first half on a 7-0 run to trail 54-50.

Los Angeles surged in front 84-75 with 1:56 remaining in the third quarter, but Portland cut the deficit to 85-82 heading into the final period on five consecutive points from Henderson.

The Trail Blazers tied the score 92-92 on a 3-pointer from 7-foot-2 rookie Donovan Clingan, the first hoop from long distance in the young career of the first-round draft pick. With 5:03 remaining, the 7-foot Ayton hit a 3-pointer to pull Portland within 97-98.

Following Ayton's late go-ahead hoop, the Clippers had multiple chances to take the lead but Zubac missed two free throws with 1:20 remaining, Amir Coffey missed a 3-point attempt with 47 seconds on the clock, and Powell had a layup blocked by Deni Avdija with 29 seconds left.

The Clippers had one last chance, but Harden's inbound pass was stolen by Ayton with one second to go.

--Field Level Media

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