Sacramento Kings De’Andre Hunter (left) drives on the Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg (32) in the first half at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Mon Nov 2, 2026 (AP News photo)
Kings Turn Three-Point Math Into Their First Victory
By Mauricio Segura
Six consecutive losses had left the Kings searching for a complete performance. Against the Mavericks, they found enough offense from their guards, enough defensive disruption from their reserves and, most importantly, a steady supply of three-pointers. The result was a 115-100 victory that gave the Kings their first win of the season and ended the Mavericks’ three-game winning streak.
Rookie Darius Acuff Jr. led the Kings with 25 points, while Malik Monk supplied 24 points and seven assists off the bench. Zach LaVine added 23 points, including five three-pointers. Together, they accounted for 72 points, but the victory depended on contributions that extended beyond the leading scorers. Leaky Black hit four threes, scored 12 points and collected four steals, while Precious Achiuwa finished with 10 rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots.
Neither team established much separation early. Daniel Gafford scored the Mavericks’ first four points, but the Kings responded through LaVine’s outside shooting and Domantas Sabonis’ work around the basket. Sabonis scored six points in the opening quarter, including a layup with 29 seconds remaining that gave the Kings a 19-18 advantage.
The lead continued changing hands in the second period. Gafford was the Mavericks’ most reliable scoring option, reaching 15 points before halftime. The Kings briefly moved ahead 28-24 on a Sabonis free throw, only for Gafford to score five consecutive points and put the Mavericks back in front. Later, a pair of Cooper Flagg free throws gave the Mavericks a 40-35 edge.
The Kings answered through their reserves. Black buried a three-pointer, De’Andre Hunter tied the score with a layup, and Monk kept the offense moving with his own perimeter shooting. After Caleb Martin’s three-pointer put the Mavericks ahead 53-51 with 46 seconds left, Monk connected from 25 feet with five seconds remaining. The Kings took a 54-53 lead into halftime despite a first half that rarely allowed either team to settle into a rhythm.
The third quarter offered the first indication that the Kings might finally separate themselves. LaVine began the half with a three-pointer, and Acuff followed with another and a driving floater to establish a 62-55 advantage. Yet the Mavericks erased that margin. Marcus Sasser scored twice to produce a 62-62 tie with 6:51 remaining.
This time, the Kings had a response that lasted. Monk converted a running dunk, Black hit another three, and Acuff contributed consecutive baskets to push the advantage to 71-65. Black’s next three-pointer extended it to 74-67. By the end of the period, the Kings led 81-74, having outscored the Mavericks 27-21 in the quarter.
The fourth quarter turned a narrow lead into a decisive one. Monk scored five of the Kings’ first eight points in the period before LaVine connected from deep to make it 89-77. Monk later hit a three-pointer for a 94-79 advantage. The Mavericks responded with eight consecutive points, cutting the deficit to seven on Walter Clayton Jr.’s three-pointer, but they could not sustain the rally.
Monk answered with another three, and Acuff took over the next stretch, scoring seven points in less than two minutes to make it 106-91. LaVine then hit consecutive threes, extending the lead to 112-93 with 2:18 remaining. The Mavericks never threatened again.
The difference from the perimeter was substantial. The Kings made 19 of 43 three-point attempts, compared with seven of 33 for the Mavericks. Gafford and Clayton each finished with 20 points for the Mavericks. Flagg scored 17 and handed out six assists but made only three of his 19 field-goal attempts, missing all four of his shots from beyond the arc.
The Kings still committed 20 turnovers according to the play-by-play, hardly the profile of a flawless outing. Yet they paired sustained outside scoring with enough defensive stops to convert a one-point halftime margin into a 15-point victory. For a team that had opened its schedule without a win, that was an outcome worth more than a single promising stretch.
Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.
