The Brooklyn Nets Drake Powell (4) gets a little hang time after dunking on the Sacramento Kings Precious Achiuwa (9) in the second half at the Barclay Center in Brooklyn on Sun Mar 29, 2026 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

Sunday evening the Sacramento Kings (19-57) and the Brooklyn Nets (18-57) clashed for the second time in a week. After beating the Nets in the first of the two, Brooklyn came out on top in game two in a 116-99 final.

Sacramento’s Devin Carter had the game high scoring 20 points with eight rebounds and four of the Sacramento starters finished in double figures. It was a disappointing loss after a more than disappointing season.

In Sunday’s game, the Kings will continue to be short-handed missing several players who were able to play last night against the Hawks. Malik Monk is out with a shoulder issue and DeMar DeRozan is suffering from a Hamstring injury. Russell Westbrook remains out and both he and Keegan Murray have possible returns on Wednesday April 1st.

Game recap: At the Barclay Center in Brooklyn the Kings had a rough start in the first quarter that persisted throughout the first half. After the first 12 minutes of play the Nets outplayed the Kings taking a 31-18 lead. Brooklyn continued to pour it on in the second quarter outscoring Sacramento 37-27 taking a huge lead going into halftime 68-45.

The Nets controlled both ends of the court leaving Sacramento reeling after two quarters. Brookly had forced nine King turnovers in the first half shutting down the Sacramento long game limiting Sacramento to 26.7 % from beyond the arc.

Sacramento got back on track in the third quarter outscoring the Nets 28-18 and took that momentum into the fourth quarter going on a 10-6 run. They cut the Brooklyn lead to 92-83 but it would come to an end there as the Nets finished off the Kings 116-99 putting an end to their ten game losing streak and extending the Sacramento losing streak to four in a row. The Nets outscored the Kings in the fourth quarter 30-26.

Four of the Kings starters scored in double figures. Carter had the game high scoring 20 points and eight rebounds. Nique Clifford finished with 17 points and seven rebounds. Precious Achiuwa had 16 points and Maxime Raynaud finished with 13 points and eight rebounds.

Some good play from the younger players as they continue to improve from the extended time on the court. This was the second matchup between these two teams in the past week giving Head Coach Doug Christie a good hard look at their young players.

Game notes: The Kings are down to the final countdown with only seven games left in the 2025-26 season. As much as any other team in the league the Kings came into the season full of promise, looking for a successful campaign.

What was to follow could not have been predicted as the team suffered a multitude of injuries throughout the entire season. It was devastating. Looking forward there are so many questions that of course lead with who will remain with the team going into the 2026-27 season.

There will be a shake-up without question and who will be the players that fill in the blanks. The Kings have seen a number of young players who have been more than impressive and they will no doubt play a huge role. Who will be drafted for the next season and what draft pick will the Kings be awarded.

Sunday the Kings played another team with much of the same questions, the Brooklyn Nets, who came into this game with a (18-57) record. Right now the Kings have the fourth worst record and will not take part in the lottery with the Pacers, the Nets and the Wizards in the three worst record slots right now. With a week’s worth of games still to be played this could change but this is where it stands right now.

The Kings will now travel to Toronto for a Wednesday evening matchup with the Raptors finishing off a five-game road trip before returning home to Golden 1. Tipoff for that game is scheduled for 5:00 PM.

Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.

⚡Craft cocktails? Check.
🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah.
🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.

Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.

Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.

📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street

Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm

Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.