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Trail Blazers Advance In Summer League Tournament Behind Layman, Swanigan

LAS VEGAS -- After two straight losses, the Portland Trail Blazers started tournament play at the Las Vegas Summer League the same way they started the preliminary round: by overcoming a slow start while securing a convincing victory. With Pat Connaughton (left hamstring strain), Zach Collins (right quad contusion) and Markel Brown (right shoulder strain) all sideline for the rest of summer league, the Trail Blazers got increased production from Jake Layman, Caleb Swanigan and Jarnell Stokes to lift Portland to an 88-77 victory versus the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the Las Vegas Summer League tournament Wednesday night at COX Pavilion on the campus of UNLV. “That slow start kind of leaks into your defense and guys aren’t as amped up to get back on defense, but it was good,” said assistant coach Jim Moran, who is handling head coaching duties for the Trail Blazers in Las Vegas. “Guys stayed with it, kept fighting. I thought we made some really nice plays in transition and just kind of stuck together and grinded one out.”With the win, the Trail Blazers are now 2-2 in summer league play. They now moves on to play the No. 1 seeded Toronto Raptors in the second round of tournament play.