Andre Adams took 3-27 from his four overs and bagged catches to get rid of Daniel Vettori and Hamish Marshall as the Knights limped through to 50-4.
The hosts never gained any momentum apart from a breezy 30 down the order from Corey Anderson before he was stumped by Gareth Hopkins.
Auckland were again aided by their slow bowlers, with left-arm spinners Bruce Martin and Ronnie Hira proving especially effective.
Martin took 3-15 off his four against his old team while Hira, who has been a revelation in T20, took one wicket and conceded a scrooge-like 12 runs from his four overs. The combination saw the Knights back in the hutch for 111 in 19.2 overs, a total never likely to be enough against an in-form Aces' batting order.
No one in the competition is in better nick than Black Caps opener Martin Guptill, and he dined out in the chase.
The Aces had a scare in the third over, when steady drizzle drove both teams from the park, but that was the only threat as the Knights' bowlers laboured.
Guptill eventually saw his side home in a canter, scoring an unbeaten 49 off a positively sedate 48 balls, pacing his innings nicely and bringing up the win with a six off Tim Southee.
Earlier, the Canterbury Wizards kept the pressure on Auckland with a well-timed chase proving enough to squeeze past the Stags at Mainpower Oval. APNZ
