Photo credit: @a2dradio_com

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Monday, April 9, 2018

An old friend came back to haunt his old team on Monday at AT&T Center in San Antonio.

Former Sacramento forward Rudy Gay scored 18 points – 16 in the second half – leading the playoff-bound Spurs past the Kings 98-85, clinching a Western Conference postseason berth for the 21st consecutive season.

Gay, who added six rebounds off the Spurs’ bench, opted out his contract with the Kings last summer and signed with San Antonio (47-34).

Willie Cauley-Stein paced Sacramento with 25 points and 10 rebounds. De’Aaron Fox contributed 21 points and seven assists and Buddy Hield added 17 points for the Kings (26-55).

40-year-old Manu Ginobili popped in 17 points (on 5-of-11 shooting) to go with six rebounds, a steal and five assists; and LaMarcus Aldridge added 15 points and 14 boards for San Antonio.

Sacramento led most of the way, as the Spurs didn’t take their first lead until the 10:18 mark of the fourth quarter. The Kings, who led by as many as 14 points, still held a 77-75 lead with 6:31 remaining until San Antonio closed the game with a 23-8 run.

Ginobili scored or assisted on 14 of those final 23 Spurs points.

Kings’ rookie Bogdan Bogdanovic struggled against the Spurs, hitting 1 of 8 field goal attempts and finishing with two points. Another key to San Antonio’s win was the free throw line – the Spurs hit 24 of 29 at the stripe, while the Kings were 11 of 17.

Up Next: The Kings conclude the regular season with a home game versus the Houston Rockets Wednesday at 7:30 pm PT.