Category: NBA

Warriors give fans a Christmas present with 99-92 win over Cavs

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Photo credit: @_LegendaryEdits

By: Ana Kieu

OAKLAND, Calif. — On Christmas day, the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers met in a rematch at Oracle Arena. The Warriors beat the Cavs 99-92 in Oakland.

Prior to the much anticipated matchup, the Warriors saw their 11-game win streak snap after the Nuggets embarrassed them with a 96-81 blowout win Saturday. Meanwhile, the Cavs were just looking to extend their win streak to two games. The Cavs edged the Bulls 115-112 at Quicken Loans Arena Thursday.

Both teams played excellent defense to start the first half. There was no score until 10:15 of the first quarter as Jae Crowder hit a three-pointer to put the Cavs on the board 3-0. Jose Calderon added another three to make it 6-0 Cavs with 9:38 left in the first.

The Warriors then started to get back into the game. Draymond Green made a driving floating bank jump shot and one of two free throws. Klay Thompson hit a three. Kevin Durant missed a couple of shots, but later snagged a rebound and made a driving finger roll layup shot. The Warriors pulled within two (12-10) with 7:15 left.

LeBron James hit a three to put the Cavs ahead 15-10 with 6:05 left. Durant then made a jump shot to bring the Warriors within four (16-12), but Kevin Love hit a three to expand the Cavs’ lead to 19-12 with 4:38 left.

James continued to work his magic on the court with a couple of layups. Kyle Korver hit a three with 21.7 seconds left. The Warriors trailed the Cavs 28-24 at the end of the first.

Both teams battled it out in a back-and-forth second quarter. The score was tied at 33 with 6:16 left in the second. Thompson made the game-tying shot–a jump shot.

Again, the score was tied at 39 with 3:57 left. Bell made a cutting dunk shot for two points for the equalizer.

The Warriors missed plenty of shots, but so did the Cavs. Durant helped the Warriors out with a three before Iguodala entered the game in his relief.

Omri Casspi made a pair of two free throws to end the first half. The Warriors led the Cavs 46-44 at halftime.

The score remained close throughout the second half.

Love hit a three to start the third quarter, but the Warriors began to pick up the pace. Love continued to contribute to the Cavs’ offense, but the Warriors gave the Cavs a hard time as Patrick McCaw hit a three and made a driving layup shot before his scoring streak ended and Andre Iguodala entered in his relief.

Casspi and Nick Young relieved Bell and Thompson late in the third. The Warriors made it rain with Durant’s pair of free throws and Casspi’s cutting dunk shot before the Cavs took a timeout.

The Iguodala show was in full effect as Iguodala made a dunk shot and a running finger roll layup shot to give the Warriors a 71-64 lead over the Cavs at the end of the third.

Dwayne Wade made it a one-point game with a three with 8:49 left in the fourth. The Warriors continued to lead 78-77, but Shaun Livingston made a dunk shot before receiving a personal foul from the referees. Durant then substituted for Iguodala.

Love made a pair of free throws, but the Cavs continued to trail the Warriors 85-81 with 5:59 left in regulation. Green, Durant and Bell fired up the Warrior offense, while the Cavs missed some much-needed shots.

James made a floating jump shot to tie the game at 92 with 1:59 left. Durant responded with a three to put the Warriors back on top 95-92 just 26 seconds later.

The Cavs got a lot of fouls in the final two minutes of the game and that seemingly affected their overall performance. Thompson closed out the game with a pair of free throws and the Warriors beat the Cavs 99-92.

Notes
Warriors’ starters: Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, Jordan Bell, Klay Thompson and Patrick McCaw.

Dwayne Wade’s teams have won 10 games on Christmas day–the most in NBA history.

Kevin Love (20) and LeBron James (22) have a combined 42 double-doubles, tied for the most among all NBA teammate duos this season.

Up Next 
The Warriors host the Jazz on Wednesday, December 27 at 7:30 pm PT.

The Cavs take on the Kings on Wednesday, December 27 at 7:00 pm PT.

Too much Aldridge, Gasol and Ginobili ends the Kings two-game win streak: Spurs win 108-99 on Saturday night

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More Hield SAS
Buddy Hield drives to the hoop for two of his 24 points Photo: USA Today Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento – The Kings stayed with the Spurs stride for stride in the opening quarter and played them to a 33-33 tie at the end of 12-minutes. The energy was high in the Golden 1 Center. Kawahi Leonard was declared unavailable due to injury management, so Sacramento fans felt their team was on a more even playing field talent wise.

They were wrong.

The Spurs outscored the Kings 29-16 in the second quarter as they shot 50-percent (11-for-22) from the field, hit 3-of-5 three-point attempts and converted 4-of-5 free throw attempts. San Antonio began a scoring drive at the 10:10 mark of the quarter and built up a 13 point lead by the time the horn sounded for halftime.

The Spurs went to the locker room at the half with a 62-49 lead over the Kings.

Sacramento came out in the third quarter knowing they had to make a run at the Spurs immediately. The Kings kept chipping away at the San Antonio lead and cut it to six-points twice. When the third period ended, SAC trailed by just eight points, 84-76.

Buddy Hield scored 10-points shooting 4-for-6 (including two 3-pointers) to lead the Kings 27-point scoring attack. Willie Cauley-Stein added eight-points.

The Kings needed to put together a run and cut the Spurs lead to five-points or less with two-minutes to go in the game to have a chance to win. That did not happen.

Former King Rudy Gay – who had previously not scored in the game – sank two jump shots and 25-foot 3-pointer in the opening 2:18 of the final quarter to help the Spurs rebuild a 14-point lead. The San Antonio lead would reach 15-points twice in the period which was too much for the Kings to overcome.

San Antonio won the game 108-99.

Top Performers

Spurs (22-11)

Gasol SAS
Pau Gasol recorded a triple-double versus the Kings on Saturday night Photo: USA Today Sports
  • Star of the Game: Paul Gasol – the Spurs 37-year old, 17-year NBA veteran – recorded a triple-double on Saturday night. Gasol scored 14-points, grabbed 11 rebounds and dished out 10 assists in just over 30-minutes on the floor. After the game Gasol said, “I have to give credit to my teammates. Without them, I wouldn’t be able to get the assists, so it’s a team accomplishment. Just happy it turned out that way tonight. It’s been a couple of years since my last triple-double.” (February 27, 2016 as a member of the Chicago Bulls)
  • Co-star: LaMarcus Aldridge only gets a co-star billing for the game because he recorded just a double-double putting up a game-high 29-points and pulling down 10 rebounds. He also played a game-high 38-minutes and 33-seconds.

  • Ginobili to hoop
    The ageless Ginobili goes to the rack versus the Kings Photo: USA Today Sports
  • Co-star: The final co-star for the Spurs is man who should probably be playing “wheelchair basketball” if you listen to “the experts” who say he should retire at the end of every season he plays. 40-year old Manu Ginobili evidently does not know he is too old to play in the NBA. On Saturday night, he scored 15-points in just over 21-minutes of playing time coming off the bench.

Kings (11-21)

  • Star of the Game: Buddy Hield was the Kings leading scorer with 24 points versus the Spurs on Saturday night. He played almost 32-minutes shooting 9-for-17 overall and 4-for-7 from behind the 3-point arc. Hield also hauled in eight rebounds in the contest. In what was also a major improvement, he committed no turnovers.

  • WCS vs SAS
    Willie Cauley-Stein posted a double-double on Saturday night Photo: USA Today Sports
  • Co-star: Willie Cauley-Stein posted his fifth double-double of the season as he scored 22 points and recorded 11 rebounds. Cauley-Stein shot 10-for-18 for the game and added three assists.
  • Co-star: Bogdan Bogdanovic had a perfect shooting night as he was 6-for-6 overall and 3-for-3 from 3-point land. Bogdanovic played 28-plus minutes against the Spurs.

Key Team Stats

San Antonio

  • Field Goal Shooting: 44-for-88 (50-percent) It’s tough to beat a team that is sinking half of its shots
  • 3-point Shooting: the Spurs made 11-of-23 (47.8-percent) 3-point attempts. Six different players made 3-point baskets
  • Free throw shooting: the Spurs went to the line only 11 times but the made nine free throws (81.8-percent) which helped them to win this game
  • The Spurs also had a fantastic assists to turnover ratio. They dished out 29 assists and turned the ball over just eight times. That is very close to a 4 to 1 ratio with a 2 to 1 ratio being the goal

Sacramento

  • Field Goal Shooting: 46.5-percent (49-for-86) which is respectable until you look and see your opponent shot 50-percent from the field
  • 3-point Shooting: The Kings actually out-shot the Spurs from behind the 3-point line. They hit 12-of-22 3-point attempts (54.5-percent). Four Kings did all of their 3-point scoring – Randolph, Temple, Hield and Bogdanovic.
  • Free throw shooting: the Kings went to the line just 11 times and converted just seven of those shots. They still need to get more attempts per game
  • Assists to turnover ratio – The Kings finished with 20 assists and 10 turnovers or the magic 2 to 1 formula. It just was not enough in this case.

Up Next

Sacramento

The Kings are done until after Christmas. Sacramento will return to action on Tuesday, December 26 when the team will travel to Los Angeles to face the Clippers at the Staples Center.

San Antonio

The Spurs headed home after the game and will have Christmas Day off. San Antonio will host the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night.

 

Warriors’ “The Town” jerseys didn’t bring good luck, Nuggets beat Warriors 96-81 to end 11-game win streak

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Photo credit: @warriors

By: Ana Kieu

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Golden State Warriors’ 11-game win streak came to an end as the Denver Nuggets cruised to a 96-81 win at Oracle Arena Saturday night.

The Warriors tipped off a little earlier than usual against the Nuggets in Oakland. Golden State was hoping to extend their win streak to 12 games while Denver was simply looking to win two games in a row.

The Warriors’ Twitter account wished everyone a Happy Festivus Seinfeld style before the tipoff. Omri Casspi, Andre Iguodala, Draymond Green, Jordan Bell, Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant put in work in the first half.

Yet, the Warriors trailed by two (22-20) at the end of the first quarter and fell behind even further by 12 (53-41) at the end of the second quarter.

At the half, Durant led all scorers with 13 points and three rebounds. Thompson scored six points and two steals. Bell had six points and six rebounds. Patrick McCaw had five points. Iguodala had six assists. Casspi had four points and three rebounds. Green had just three points and four assists.

The Warriors outshot the Nuggets 21-20, but trailed the Nuggets 73-62 at the end of the third quarter. Green was a reliable man on the court and so were Bell, Durant, Iguodala and even Nick Young, who hit a three-pointer late in the quarter.

Thompson knocked down a corner three-pointer with 7:54 left in the fourth quarter.

JaVale McGee made some buckets late in the quarter. The Warriors tried their best, but the Nuggets embarrassed the home team 96-81 on their home court.

At the end, Durant led all scorers with 18 points, six rebounds, two steals and two blocks. Thompson scored 15 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals. Green had 10 points, five rebounds, six assists, two steals and two blocks. Bell had seven points, 10 rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks. McCaw had seven points, two rebounds and two steals. Casspi had just five points, seven rebounds and two assists.

Notes
Warriors’ injury update: Kevon Looney (gluteal strain) is available to play. Shaun Livingston (sore right knee) and Zaza Pachulia (left shoulder soreness) are out.

Nuggets’ injury update: Emmanuel Mudiay (right ankle sprain) and Paul Millsap (left wrist ligament injury) are out.

Up Next
The Warriors host the Cavs in an NBA Finals rematch on Christmas Day at 12 pm PT.

The Nuggets return home to host the Utah Jazz on Tuesday, December 26 at 7 pm MT.

Draymond Green returns, Warriors rout Lakers 113-106 for 11th straight win

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Photo credit: @mercnews

By: Ana Kieu

OAKLAND, Calif. — Draymond Green returned to the court, NBC Sports Bay Area provided the fans their Authentic Fan cheer cards, and the Golden State Warriors faced the Los Angeles Lakers for the second time this week. The Warriors beat the Lakers 113-106 at Oracle Arena on Friday night.

The Warriors were ready to shoot some hoops on a Friday night. The Golden State starting lineup consisted of Green, Kevin Durant, Jordan Bell, Klay Thompson and Patrick McCaw. Meanwhile, the Lakers put some pressure on the Warriors. The Los Angeles starting lineup featured Andrew Bogut (former Warrior), Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Kyle Kuzma.

The first quarter flew by, but Durant stepped back and drained a three-pointer with 3:17 left on the game clock.

The Warriors led the Lakers 27-24 at the end of the first quarter.

Durant continued to make it rain in the second quarter, and the Warriors carried a 61-44 lead over the Lakers to the locker room at halftime.

At the half, Durant led all Warriors with 18 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Thompson scored 11 points. Bell had 10 points, eight rebounds and two assists. Green had five points, eight rebounds and three assists. West had six points, two rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Omri Casspi had six points. Young had five points.

With a huge block, Durant put an end to the Lakers’ 8-0 run in the third quarter.

The Warriors led the Lakers 84-72 after three quarters.

Caldwell-Pope hit a three-pointer to make it a two-point game (88-86) with 8:09 left in the fourth quarter. Yet, the Warriors were still in charge of the game as they were up 99-97 with 3:12 remaining. Jordan Clarkson missed a three-point shot and the Lakers had a team rebound to close out the game.

The Warriors beat the Lakers 113-106 at home.

In the end, Durant led all scorers with 33 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, two steals and four blocks. Bell scored 20 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. Thompson had 16 points and two blocks. Green had 13 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and two steals. McCaw had five points and three rebounds. Casspi had 10 points, three rebounds and two blocks. West had eight points, four rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Young had just eight points and two rebounds.

Notes
Warriors’ injury update: Andre Iguodala (flu-like symptoms) is available to play. Zaza Pachulia (left shoulder soreness) & Shaun Livingston (sore right knee) are out.

Before the Lakers got rolling tonight, DeMarcus Hollins and South Bay (12-6) took on Canton at 4 pm PT.

Up Next
The Warriors host the Nuggets on Saturday, December 23 at 5:30 pm PT.

The Lakers host the Trail Blazers on Saturday, December 23 at 6:30 pm PT.

Lakers retire Kobe Bryant’s No. 8 and No. 24 jerseys, Warriors pick up 116-114 overtime win

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Former Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant watches as both of his jersey’s are retired during a halftime ceremony at an NBA basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Golden State Warriors in Los Angeles, Monday, Dec. 18, 2017. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

By: Ana Kieu

The Golden State Warriors edged the Los Angeles Lakers 116-116 in overtime at Staples Center Monday night.

For the Golden State, Patrick McCaw (rookie) made his second start of the season. McCaw scored a season-high 16 points to go with career-highs of seven assists and four steals in his first start on November 27 vs. Kings.

Nick Young closed out the first quarter in style with a three-pointer with just 11 seconds left on the clock. The Golden State led the Lakers 32-24 at the end of the first.

The Lakers brought some momentum into the second quarter, but the Golden State held onto a mere 57-53 lead at the half. Kevin Durant led all scorers with 12 points, five rebounds and four assists. Omri Casspi scored 10 points, six rebounds and two assists. Klay Thompson had eight points and five rebounds. JaVale McGee had six points. Young had eight points.

As expected, Thompson was being his usual self and made some jumpers to start the second half. Andre Iguodala found Kevon Looney for the dunk with 3:50 left in the third quarter. Golden State led the Lakers by just one point (83-82) at the end of the third.

Iguodala was all the way up in the fourth quarter. He also went coast to coast with an impressive two-handed jam at the 10:29 mark.

Both teams battled it out until the end of regulation. The contest went into overtime after a 102-102 tie for the second time at the Staples Center this season.

Lonzo Ball played downhill and hit a layup to put the Lakers up by one (113-112) with 1:03 left in overtime. The Lakers were out of timeouts in the final minute of overtime.

Golden State, however, managed to get past the Lakers for a 116-112 overtime victory for their ninth straight win and seventh on the road.

Notes
Thompson had his fourth career double-double with 17 points and a career-high-tying 10 rebounds. This was his second this season.

Golden State assistant coach Bruce Fraser turned 53 today.

Draymond Green held his second annual Christmas giveaway over the weekend, where he hosted roughly 50 kids from Oakland for some holiday fun.

Up Next
The Golden State return to Oracle Arena to host the Grizzlies on Wednesday, December 20 at 7:30 pm PST.

The Lakers take on the Rockets on Wednesday, December 20 at 7:30 pm CST.

Warriors win 10th straight game after defeating the Grizzlies 97-84

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Photo credit: @mercnews

By: Ana Kieu

The Golden State Warriors beat the Memphis Grizzlies 97-84 at Oracle Arena Wednesday night.

The Warriors and Grizzlies were ready to battle it out on the court tonight. Fans in attendance received Zaza Pachulia bobbleheads, courtesy of realtor.com. The Golden State starting lineup featured Kevin Durant, Jordan Bell, JaVale McGee, Klay Thompson and Quinn Cook. Meanwhile, the Grizzlies’ starting lineup consisted of Tyreke Evans, Marc Gasol, Andrew Harrison, Dillon Brooks and JaMychal Green.

McGee got Golden State going with a hook early in the first quarter. He continued to make a couple of notable plays. Durant, Thompson and Omri Casspi also made things exciting for Golden State. However, the Golden State trailed the Grizzlies 28-24 at the end of the first quarter.

Thompson scored 25 points in the first half, which was a season-high for any half this year. Last time, Thompson had 23 on Oct. 20 at the New Orleans Pelicans. Thompson’s career half high is 40 points, dating back to Dec. 5, 2016 vs. Indiana Pacers.

The Golden State held a 56-51 lead over the Grizzlies at halftime.

Durant’s shooting wasn’t spectacular in the third quarter, but Nick Young hit a three-pointer to make up for Durant’s rather lackluster performance. The Warriors led the Grizzlies 74-65 at the end of the third quarter.

Patrick McCaw made a putback dunk to push the Warriors ahead 76-68 with 10:12 left in the fourth quarter.

The Warriors defeated the Grizzlies 97-84 at home.

Here are Golden State final stats:


Notes: Warriors injury update: Draymond Green (right shoulder soreness), Andre Iguodala (flu-like symptoms) and Zaza Pachulia (left shoulder soreness) are out for tonight’s game vs. Grizzlies.

Grizzlies’ injury report: Mike Conley (left heel), Wayne Selden Jr. (right quad) and Chandler Parsons are out (rest) for tonight’s game vs. Warriors. Brandon Wright (right groin) is listed as doubtful.

Up Next
Warriors host the Lakers on Friday, December 22 at 7:30 pm PST.

Grizzlies visit the Suns on Thursday, December 21 at 7:00 pm MST.

Randolph’s 10,000th rebound is icing on the cake for Kings as they top Nets 104-99

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Brooklyn Nets’ Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (24) defends Sacramento Kings’ Zach Randolph (50) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in New York. The Kings won 104-99. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

By Jessica Kwong

BROOKLYN–The Sacramento Kings won back-to-back games for the first time this season on Wednesday night, surviving a late rally by the Brooklyn Nets to win 104-99 at Barclays Center.

As icing on the cake, Kings forward Zach Randolph surpassed 10,000 career rebounds.

“It’s a good win for us,” Kings head coach Dave Joerger said.

“It’s been a tough place for our organization to get some wins. I think in seven years we’ve only done it once,” Joerger said. “We got some good performances tonight from some guys who had tough nights last night.”

Sacramento led throughout most of the match at Barclays Center until about halfway into the final quarter. The Kings lead by as many as 15 points, but the Nets chipped away until Joe Harris made a driving layup to cut Sacramento’s lead to 97-95 with 5 minutes remaining in the game.

Kings forward Bogdan Bogdanovic was fouled with 10.7 seconds to go with his team up 101-99 and made one of two free throws. Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie missed a triple but the ball went out of bounds off the Kings with 4.8 seconds remaining. Brooklyn blew it when Harris made a bad pass.

Dinwiddie fouled Kings guard George Hill, who made both free throws, allowing his team to win the game 104-99.

“That was a team win,” Joerger said. “Teams are going to make runs, teams are going to make shots, so it’s how do we handle that, where do we get the ball to.”

Sacramento’s leading scorers were Hill with 22 points, Randolph with 21 points and Bogdanovic with 14 points.

Kings beat the Sixers 101-95 in Philly Tuesday night to sweep the season series

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Z=bo vs sixers
Zach Randolph was a leader in the Kings victory over the Sixers Photo USA Today Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings picked up their first win on their four-game road trip Tuesday night when they downed the Philadelphia 76ers 101-95 in Philadelphia. The victory gave the Kings the series sweep over the Sixers who they defeated in Sacramento on November 9th 109-108.

That is a bit ironic after the Kings just finished being swept by the Toronto Raptors on Sunday.

The Kings found themselves down 78-71 as they headed into the fourth quarter. They would need a 10-point effort from Buddy Hield and nine-points from Garrett Temple to lead a 30-point scoring barrage that would help them to victory. Willie Cauley-Stein added six-points in the final period as the Kings outscored the Sixers 30-17 in the fourth quarter.

Sacramento used 12-of-13 players on their bench in the contest. Only Georgios Papagiannis did not play. George Hill was not available due to illness.

The Sixers held a 57-48 lead at halftime due to some solid play from Robert Covington, Ben Simmons, T.J. McConnell and JJ Redick. Philly outscored the Kings 30-18 in the second quarter and it looked like the Sacramento squad might be in for a long night.

Sacramento kept things close in the third period which allowed them to have opportunity to take control in the fourth quarter.

Kings star of the game

Frank Mason to hoo[
Frank Mason had another strong game off the bench for the Kings Photo USA Today Sports
Rookie reserve point guard Frank Mason gets the star of the game nod for the win over the Sixers on Tuesday night. Mason scored 16-points in just over 22-minutes of playing time on the floor. The four-year Kansas alum shot 7-for-9 from the floor and went 2-for-2 from behind the 3-point line. He also recorded two blocked shots in the game. Mason has demonstrated a maturity and confidence coming off the bench that has served the Kings very well this season.

Kings co-stars of the game

  • Zach Randolph made a good argument that he should have been the star of the game. The veteran power forward put up 27-points and grabbed five rebounds in just over 28-minutes on the court. The man who was brought in as a “role model” has become “a game changer” for the Kings.
  • Buddy Hield did not have his best night from 3-point land but he shot 9-for-19 for the game. He recorded 24-points, grabbed five rebounds, dished out two assists and made three steals in just over 28-minutes of playing time.

Sixers star of the game

Ben Simmons has to get the star as he came within one assist of recording a triple-double. Simmons scored 13-points, hauled in 12 rebounds and distributed nine assists in his 32-plus minutes on the floor.

Sixers co-stars of the game

  • Forward Robert Covington recorded 17-points despite having a very tough shooting night. Covington shot 5-for-19 overall and just 2-for-13 from 3-point range. He did go a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line.
  • Jerryd Bayless scored 15 points for the second-unit coming off the bench and seeing just over 26-minutes of action in the contest. Bayless shot 5-for-12 overall and hit 4-of-8 opportunities from downtown.

Key Team stats of the game

Sacramento

  • The Kings shot 41-for-91 (45.1-percent) in the game and hit 7-of-27 (25.9-percent) from behind the 3-point line.
  • Sacramento went 12-for-23 from the free throw line ( the percentage was poor but the number of attempts was excellent and was a real improvement)
  • The Kings committed just 12 turnovers which became 15 Philly points

Philadelphia

  • The Sixers shot 34-for-81 for the game. That was 10 less attempts and seven less conversions than the Kings.
  • Philly hit 10-of-35 3-point attempts. That was three more conversions than the Kings.
  • They went 17-for-24 from the free throw line. The Sixers hit five more free throws than the Kings.
  • Philly out-rebounded the Kings 53-39

Up next

Kings (10-20)

Sacramento wraps up their four-game road on Wednesday night when they will face the Brooklyn Nets in Brooklyn. The Nets are 11-18 on the season. FiveThirtyEight.com gives the Kings a 27-percent chance of winning the game and makes them a six point underdog.

Sixers (14-16)

Philly will host the Toronto Raptors on Thursday night. FiveThirtyEight.com makes the Sixers a 0.5 underdog and gives them only a 48-percent chance to win.

 

The Raptors sweep the season series with the Kings; winning Sunday in Toronto 108-93

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Bogi assists
Bogdanovic dishes an assist versus Raptors Photo: USA Today Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings record dropped to 0-2 on their four-game trip as they lost game two on Sunday to the Toronto Raptors 108-93. With the win on Sunday, the Raptors completed a season sweep of the the two-game series between the two teams. The Kings swept the series in 2016-17 but DeMarcus Cousins was still on the Sacramento roster when that happened.

The Kings did manage to avoid falling behind 13-0 as they had one week ago in Sacramento. The Kings trailed trailed by just five points – 35 to 30 – after the first 12-minutes of play. Garrett Temple was the leading scorer in the opening quarter with 10-points.

The Kings went with an interesting starting five. Vince Carter, Kosta Koufos, Willie Cauley-Stein, Garrett Temple and George Hill took the floor to start the game for Sacramento. Zach Randolph was held out for rest. De’Aaron Fox was unavailable because of a Right Quadriceps Contusion suffered in the Minnesota game. JaKarr Sampson had to be sent to the G-League as a two-way player to fulfill his commitment to the Bighorns.

The Kings really shined in the second quarter as they outscored the Raptors 33-26. Bogdan Bogdanovic led the scoring with 11-points shooting 4-for-5 overall while hitting 3-of-4 from 3-point land. George Hill posted nine-points going a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the 3-point arc.

Sacramento went to the locker room at halftime with a 63-61 lead. That would be that last positive highlight for the Kings in the game. The Raptors would outscore the Kings 22-14 in the third quarter and 25-16 in final period of the game. Too much experienced talent and the low percentage chances of winning on the road had caught up the Kings on Sunday afternoon in Toronto.

Kings star of the game

Bogdan Bogdanovic gets the star of the game for Sacramento. The Kings oldest rookie came off the bench to score 18-points in just over 28-minutes on the floor. He shot 7-for-10 overall and hit 4-of-7 from behind the 3-point line. He also handed out five dimes while grabbing three rebounds.

Kings co-stars

Willie scores
Willie Cauley-Stein scores against Toronto Photo: USA Today Sports
  • Garrett Temple – the talented swing-man also recorded 18-points hitting 6-of-13 shots from the floor including two 3-point baskets. He added two rebounds and two assists.
  • Veteran George Hill put 16-points in the book by sinking 6-of-11 shots. Hill converted 4-of-7 3-point attempts. He also distributed five assists.
  • Willie Cauley-Stein continues to get back into the swing of things as he recorded 12 points and hauled in six rebounds. He also added four assists.

Raptors star of the game

It really comes as no surprise that DeMar DeRozan was the star of the game for the Raptors. DeRozan put up a game-high 21-points as he shot 6-for-17 from the field. He was much more successful from charity stripe where hit 9-of-12 opportunities. DeRozan also handed out five assists and had two blocked shots.

Raptors co-stars

  • Guard Kyle Lowry had a better statistical on Sunday than he did last week against the Kings. He put up 14-points hitting 5-of-11 shots from the floor and 4-of-8 from 3-point land. Lowry added seven assists and five rebounds.
  • OG Anunoby scored 13-points, Norman Powell added 13 off the bench, Fred VanVleet recorded 11 points and Delon Wright came off the bench to add 10-points.

Important team stats

Sacramento

Vince got a start
Carter got the start in Toronto Photo: USA Today Sports
  • Field goal percentage: 46.9-percent (38-for-81)
  • 3-point shooting percentage: 42.3-percent (11-for-26)
  • Free Throws: 6-for-8 (75-percent) not nearly enough attempts
  • 32 rebounds – that’s too low
  • 25 assist and 17 assists ( led to 13 Raptor points)

Toronto

  • Toronto shot 36-for-45 (42.4-percent) from the field
  • They hit 13-of-30 (43.3-percent) from 3-point range
  • The Raptors converted 23-of-28 free throw attempts (this was a major difference in the game)
  • Toronto grabbed 46 rebounds (14 more than the Kings)
  • The Raptors had 20 assists
  • Toronto committed just 12 turnovers that yielded only three points for the Kings

Up next for the Kings

The Kings move on to the “City of Brotherly Love” to take on the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night.

Towns, Timberwolves blow out Kings 119-96

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Sacramento Kings forward Zach Randolph (5) reaches for the ball in front of Minnesota Timberwolves center Taj Gibosn (67) in the third quarter of an NBA basketball game on Thursday, Dec. 14, 2017, in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves defeated the Kings 119-96. (AP Photo/Andy Clayton-King)

By: London Marq

The explosive Minnesota Timberwolves welcomed the Sacramento Kings in a midseason tilt with plenty of young talent to go around. The Kings, who are 5-5 over their last 10 games, continue to search for rhythm and consistency. The Timberwolves, led by Karl-Anthony Towns, would prove difficult for the Kings to handle.

Slow starts have been a problematic trend for Sacramento. On the road in hostile territory, the Kings fell behind early and were outclassed by the Timberwolves stars: Towns and Jimmy Butler, whose offensive prowesses were too much for the Kings, who are inconsistent and exhibit poor defense.

The Timberwolves were in control from start to finish. All five of Minnesota’s starters scored double-digit points. Towns led all scorers with 30 points and 14 rebounds.

George Hill led the Kings in scoring with 16 points.

16 points was all the Kings could muster in the third quarter, as the Minnesota defense came out rolling in all cylinders after halftime.

The Timberwolves walked away with a 119-96 blowout win over the Kings at the Target Center.

Up Next: Kings visit the Raptors on Sunday, December 17 at 12:30 pm PST.