The Sacramento Kings guard Buddy Hield (24) who finsished with 22 points drives against the Toronto Raptors forward Yuta Wantanabe (18) during Fri Jan 29, 2021 game in Tampa Bay (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

The Sacramento Kings have been putting their losing ways behind them. The Kings, after losing five straight and getting two games postponed, have won their last two games. The Kings most recently defeated the Orlando Magic in Florida by a final of 121-107. The Kings are looking to turn the tide on the season. They still have time as the NBA season is long.

In Friday’s game, the Kings faced the Toronto Raptors and got a two point 126-124 win for their third straight win. The last time these two teams faced off it was ugly. The Raptors ended up getting the victory but neither team played any defense and at the time Toronto was 2-6 on the season. On Friday, the Raptors come in at a 7-11 record looking to improve on a rough opening month. The tip off was set for 4:30 PM PST in Toronto.

In the first half, the Kings played well! They managed to jump out to an early double digit lead outscoring the Raptors 36-24 in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Kings regressed a little bit. They were outscored 34-32 in the second quarter as the defense took a step back.

It was a worrying trend after what seems to be a daily occurrence of second half meltdowns for the Kings. However, the Kings still lead 68-58 heading into halftime feeling good about their chances. Up until this point Harrison Barnes had 15 points and Pascal Siakam had 17.

In the second half, the third quarter went according to the Kings plans. They could have performed better in the other defensive end but nonetheless outscored the Raptors 36-33. In the fourth, the Kings didn’t play well. They were outscored by the Raptors 33-22 in the final quarter.

However, the Kings managed to hold on and beat the Raptors despite having faltered in the final minutes. The defense didn’t it hold together, and they didn’t score at the clip they had earlier in the game. However, in the end they won and that’s something they can build on. The Kings were led by Harrison Barnes who scored 26 points in victory. In defeat, the Raptors were led by Pascal Siakam who had 32 points.

Up Next: The Kings make the flight to Miami to take on the Heat at 5 PM PST on Saturday evening. Charlie O will have coverage for us at http://www.sportsradioservice.com