Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) led with 32 points over the Sacramento Kings at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Sat Oct 26, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Sacramento Kings (0-2) lost another close contest to the Los Angeles Lakers (3-0) 131-127. They trailed for almost all of the second half but had an amazing third quarter. They won the third quarter 34-23 but really struggled in the early minutes of the fourth quarter.

The Lakers scored 14 unanswered points in the first two minutes of the final quarter. Sacramento has really shown some positive signs however in the early going of the season and really look to be turning the corner. The have some things to work out but seem to be on course as they return home for a game with the Minnesota Timberwolves Monday.

Game recap: After the first 12 minutes of play the Lakers had a slim 28-26 lead. The second quarter was a rough one for the Kings as the Lakers scored 12 unanswered points taking a 40-26 lead.

Sacramento was digging a hole that preempted another timeout. The Kings had to stop the bleeding trailing 27-42 at 8:36. The Lakers were dominating from the field, from downtown and defensively really taking it to the Kings in the opening minutes of the second quarter.

Sacramento was falling flat offensively as well. Sacramento cut into the Lakers 15-point lead at the six-minute mark 46-36 but still had a lot of ground to make up. At 3:49 the Laker lead had been more than cut in half 53-47 as the Kings mounted a rally.

With three minutes left in the half, the Kings trailed by two points 53-51 forcing a Los Angeles timeout. The Kings kept fighting and with 30 seconds left in the first half trialed by a single point 58-59.

The Lakers pushed their lead back out to four points 64-60 but Sacramento had turned this game around in the second quarter after trailing by as much as 15 points. The Kings went on a 10-0 run late in the half gaining a bit of momentum.

The Kings would need a whole lot more production from De’Aaron Fox, DeMar DeRozan and Keegan Murray in the second half although all three began to heat up in the closing minutes of the half.

At 9:55 the Kings took their first lead since the early minutes of the first quarter 67-66. Sacramento continued to push the lead and at the seven minute mark in the third quarter had taken a 74-69 lead.

After a couple of easy Laker hoops the Kings took a timeout at 4:55 hanging onto a 78-74 lead. After three quarters of play the Kings had a 94-87 lead. The fast pace of the game was working well for the Kings.

It all turned sideways for Sacramento as the Lakers went on a scoring frenzy to start the fourth quarter. In two minutes time Los Angeles scored 14 unanswered points taking a 101-94 lead. The Lakers continued to push their lead and Sacramento couldn’t buy a bucket missing seven shots in a row.

The Lakers continued to score and the Kings remained stagnant. Sacramento finally scored at 7:38 their first points of the fourth quarter trailing 97-108. When it looked like the Kings had control of the game in the third quarter, it all fell apart.

The culprit in this crazy turnabout for the Lakers was LeBron James who had scored 32 points with nearly seven minutes left in the game. He was unstoppable. With under four minutes left in the game the Kings did their best to fight back but the Lakers were relentless as the two teams traded buckets.

With just under two minutes left in the game the Lakers had a five point lead 123-118. Every time the Kings got close, the Lakers pushed the lead back leaving a frustrated Sacramento team in their wake. With under a minute it was a two point game 123-125. The Lakers Anthony Davis hit a three to push the lead to 128-123. The Kings fought hard but again came up short, the final score 131-127.

The Kings high score for this game was Domantas Sabonis with 29 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for a triple double. De’Aaron Fox finished with 28 points and DeMar DeRozan hit 23 points.

LeBron James had the game high with 32 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists for a triple double.

Game notes: Saturday night the Kings traveled to Los Angeles for a game with the Lakers . The Kings struggled through the pre-season as they continue to work through some of the changes on their roster this season. They lost a heat-breaker to the Minnesota Timberwolves Thursday night 117-115.

The Kings saw some great work from Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan and Keegan Murray but Sacramento came up just short. They played well enough to win the game but needed a little more from De’Aaron Fox but it is still so early in the season and the Kings has really begun to pull it together. Saturday night they were looking for their first win of the regular season against LeBron James and the Lakers. The Kings came close but couldn’t seal the deal losing by 4 points.

Monday the Kings will head back home for a date with the Portland Trailblazers looking for their first win of the season. Tipoff for this game is scheduled for 7:00 PM.