SACRAMENTO -- Operating without starters DeMarcus Cousins and Darren Collison, the Kings fought valiantly yet fell to the Blazers 110-99 on Sunday at Sleep Train Arena.
The Kings trailed by 10 points entering the fourth quarter but cut the Blazers lead to 89-88 at the 8:23 mark of the fourth quarter on a Rudy Gay 3-pointer but couldn’t get over the hump.
Portland outscored the Kings 21-11 the rest of the way to secure the road win.
Shooting from downtown loomed large as the Blazers were 10-24 from 3-point range and limited the Kings to just three 3-pointers.
Portland also outscored the Kings 24-12 in second chance points and were plus-10 in rebound margin at 43-33. The Kings entered Sunday’s game leading the NBA in rebound margin.
Damian Lillard led the Blazers (39-19) with 31 points and LaMarcus Aldridge added 26 points while Robin Lopez (17) and Wesley Matthews (15) rounded out the double-figure scoring in the winning effort.
Rudy Gay lead the Kings (20-37) with 24 points while Derrick Williams scored 18 including 13 points in the fourth quarter.
Ray McCallum, Ben McLemore and Andre Miller added 12 points apiece.
Miller added 10 assists to secure a double-double in the loss.
Gay had averaged 32 points per game in his last four games versus Portland but the Blazers held him in check in the fourth quarter, limiting him to five points in the final stanza.
Cousins missed his second straight game due to a left ankle sprain while Collison missed his eighth consecutive game because of injury and is likely facing surgery next week to repair a core muscle strain.
Sacramento fell to 2-12 this season without Cousins.
Sacramento is now 2-3 under Karl and to 13-19 at home this season.
The Blazers now own a modest three-game winning streak and improve to 14-13 on the road.
With the win, Portland also takes the season series over Sacramento 2-1.
Tied at 11, Portland went on a 12-0 run to ascend to a 23-11 lead and the Blazers ultimately led 34-23 at the end of the first stanza.
Sacramento cut the Blazers lead to 44-41 on a Derrick Williams driving layup in transition off an Andre Miller assist at the 5:23 mark of the second quarter.
However, Portland bounced back outscoring Sacramento 20-9 over the remainder of the second quarter and maintained a 64-50 advantage heading into the locker room at halftime.
The Kings cut the deficit to 74-67 at the 5:04 mark of the third quarter on a Rudy Gay jumper off a McLemore assist.
However, Portland responded and faced a 85-75 deficit heading into the final 12 minutes of action.
STANDOUT PERFORMER:
Damian Lillard, the kid from nearby Oakland, was too much to handle, scoring 31 points and adding seven assists.
TURNING POINT:
Portland did bend but didn’t break going on a 21-11 run to seal the deal after the Kings cut the deficit to one at 89-88 at the 8:23 mark of the fourth quarter.
INJURY UPDATE:
Kings -- G Darren Collison (right hip flexor strain), C DeMarcus Cousins (left ankle sprain and left hip contusion) F Eric Moreland (left shoulder labral tear) and did not play.
Blazers -- C Joel Freeland (right shoulder strain) was active and played two minutes in the second quarter.
WHAT’S NEXT:
The Kings eight-game road trip commences on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks.
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