Category: Sacramento Kings

Sacramento Kings post game wrap: Kings Humiliate Warriors With 110-106 Win In Front Of Sellout Crowd At Oracle Arena

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Sacramento Kings’ Bogdan Bogdanovic (8) celebrates a score in the final seconds of an NBA basketball against the Golden State Warriors with Garrett Temple, left, and Frank Mason III (10) on Monday, Nov. 27, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. Sacramento won 110-106. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By: Ana Kieu

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Sacramento Kings humiliated the Golden State Warriors with a 110-106 win in front of a sellout crowd of 19,596 at Oracle Arena Monday night.

The Kings had a goal in mind to snap the Warriors’ two-game win streak in order to avoid a two-game losing skid on the road.

Nick Young hit a three-pointer to put the Warriors up 25-20 with 2:26 left in the first quarter. However, Buddy Hield made a statement after getting off the bench in the second quarter. Hield hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 25 with 1:31 left in the first.

The Kings and Warriors were tied at 27 after the first quarter of the regional rivalry game.

Zach Randolph completed a set of free throws with 21.5 seconds left in the second quarter. Garrett Temple then attempted a three-pointer, but it missed the net. The Kings trailed the Warriors by two (55-53) at the half.

The Kings and Warriors continued to compete in the second half.

As usual, the Kings’ Twitter account had some fun, which sparked some outrage among Kings fans and #BasketballTwitter in general.

The Kings and Warriors went back-and-forth in the third quarter. The Kings put Frank Mason III in for Fox with 2:52 left in the third. Warriors’ JaVale McGee committed an offensive charge foul. After the replay review, the officials announced a support ruling. Andre Iguodala hit a three-pointer and McGee picked up the assist, but Vince Carter shot a driving reverse layup to put the Kings ahead 82-76 with 1:36 left in the third. That’s the reason why Kings fans call Carter “Vinsanity” for a reason.

The Kings took a 83-82 lead over the Warriors after the third quarter.

The Kings weren’t expecting any surprises, but the Warriors were without Steph Curry and Kevin Durant, so they weren’t at the top of their game tonight. Willie Cauley-Stein shot a driving dunk to tie the score at 98 with six minutes left in the fourth quarter.

However, the Kings started to fall behind, and that wasn’t what they wanted. As a result, Cauley-Stein came to the rescue and shot an alley-oop dunk to tie the score at 106 with 1:46 left in the fourth.

The Kings had no more timeouts, so they had to hang on late in the game. Bogdan Bogdanovic made a driving floating bank jump shot to give the Kings a 108-106 lead with 12.6 seconds left. Bogdanovic added two free throws, and the Kings (6-14) ended a nine-game road losing streak and dealt a humiliating setback to the defending champion Warriors (15-6) with a 110-106 win on the road.

Notes
Kings’ Starters
De’Aaron Fox, George Hill, Garrett Temple, Skal Labissiere and Zach Randolph.

Injuries

Kings: Harry Giles (bi-lateral knee rehabilitation) is out.
Warriors: Steph Curry (right hand contusion) and Kevin Durant (sprained left ankle) are out. Andre Iguodala (sore left knee) is doubtful. Draymond Green (right foot contusion) is available to play. Damian Jones is on a G-League assignment.

Team leaders
Kings

Points: Randolph (13.2)

Rebounds: Koufos (6.2)

Assists: Fox (4.5)

Warriors

Points: Curry (26)

Rebounds: Green (7.4)

Assists: Green (6.7)

Up Next
The Warriors take on the Lakers on Wednesday, November 29 at 7:30 pm PST.

The Kings host the Bucks on Tuesday, November 28 at 7 pm PST.

Third quarter collapse costs Kings the game as Clippers win 97-95

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
Z-Bo vs DeAndre Jordan
Two heavyweights face off: Zach Randolph and DeAndre Jordan photo: USA Today Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento – The Sacramento Kings played great basketball for 36-minutes on Saturday night against the Los Angeles Clippers. Unfortunately for the Kings, the 12-minutes they did not play well in the third quarter cost them the game as they lost to LAC 97-95.

The Kings went on a 6-0 run with 1:20 remaining in the game to the tie the score at 95-95 with 15.6-seconds to go on the game clock. The Clippers called a timeout with 14.8-seconds to go to draw up a play.

The Clippers put the ball into the hands of their leading scorer Blake Griffin who made a fadeaway jump shot from the left side of the floor to give his team a two-point lead with 3.7-seconds remaining in the game. LAC head coach Doc Rivers would later say he was not happy because his team took that shot too early leaving the Kings too much time on the clock.

Buddy Hield put up a desperation floating jump shot at the buzzer but it was no good. The Clippers (7-11) won their second game in row downing the Kings (5-14) by just two points.

The 3rd Quarter was a nightmare for Sacramento

The Kings scored only 10 points in the third quarter versus the Clippers after posting 61 points in the first half. LAC came out with a defensive mindset and dominated SAC.

The Kings shot 45.8-percent for the game but shot only 21.1-percent (4-for-19) in the disastrous quarter. They converted 11-of-21 three-point attempts for the game but went 0-for-4 in the third quarter.

Sacramento had one assist while they turned the ball over eight times which resulted in seven points for the Clippers.

Ten Kings players saw action in the third quarter, but only four of them scored points. All 10 players had a minus number on their +/- stat for the quarter.

Blake Griffin and Lou Williams led the scoring for the Clippers with 12 points each. Los Angeles shot 55.6-percent (10-for-18) from the field and hit on 6-of-8 (75-percent) 3-point attempts in the third period.

The Kings outscored the Clippers in every quarter except the third when LAC recorded 29 points to just 10 for SAC.

Dave Joerger was not happy with the loss but he knows it is part of player development

“Buddy Buckets” leads the Kings in scoring

Buddy Hield had an exceptional game for Sacramento coming off the bench scoring 27 points in just under 26-minutes of playing time. The second-year shooting guard hit 10-of-18 shots from the floor. Nine of those shots were taken behind the 3-point line and Hield hit seven of those attempts for 21 of his 27 points. His back-to-back 3-pointers in the last 1:20 of the game put the Kings in a position to possibly win the contest.

One of the criticisms of Hield coming out of Oklahoma was that he would not be able to convert the longer 3-point shot in the NBA. It certainly appears to have proved those critics were wrong. Hield has adjusted just fine to the deeper 3-point zone in “the Association”.

Zach Randolph drew the very tough assignment of matching up with Clippers big, tough center DeAndre Jordan. Not only did Z-Bo play Jordan tough – he held the center to five points. Jordan did haul in a game-high 16 rebounds.  Z-Bo put up 17 points shooting 7-for-14 in the game. Randolph also added seven rebounds, three assists and one steal in his 30-plus minutes of playing time.

Bogdan Bogdanovic posted 10-points on Saturday night. He shot 50-percent hitting on 4-of-8 shots from the field. He was 1-for-2 from 3-point land.

George Hill also scored 10 points against the Clippers on Saturday night. He went 4-for-7 shooting from the floor and hit 1-of-2 attempts from 3-point territory. Hill also dished out three assists.

SAC had some impressive team numbers

The Kings shot 33-for-83 (45.8-percent) from the floor versus the Clippers. They shot an impressive 52.4-percent (11-for-21) from downtown. SAC converted 8-of-9 free throw opportunities (88.9-percent). The nine free throw attempts number is too low.

Sacramento recorded 37 rebounds (eight offensive) to go with 19 assists, nine steals and eight blocked shots. The Kings committed 18 turnovers which resulted in 15 Clipper points.

Doc Rivers was happy to see his team pick up its second consecutive win

Blake Griffin played like an All-Star

The veteran forward scored a game-high 33-points in his 38-plus minutes on the floor. Griffin shot 13-for-25 from the field but was just 2-for-7 from behind the 3-point line. He recorded five assists and had four rebounds.

Lou Williams scored 10 of his 18 points in the second-half. He shot 4-for-8 from the floor. All four of his baskets were 3-point buckets. His other six-points came two 2-point baskets and at the free throw line. Williams also posted five assists and had three steals.

Up Next

Sacramento

Life does not get any easier for the Kings as on Monday night they have to travel to the Bay Area to take on the Defending NBA World Champion Golden Warriors (15-5).

Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers will also return to action on Monday night when they will host the guys who use the locker room on the other side of the Staples Center – the Los Angeles Lakers.

 

Kings defeat rival Lakers, 113-102, Cauley-Stein records season-high 26 points

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Photo credit: @SacramentoKings

By London Marq

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — All eyes were on the rookies for tonight’s matchup in Sacramento, California at the Golden 1 Center. This year’s fifth pick in the draft De’Aaron Fox and the No. 2 pick Lonzo Ball, squared to face-off for the first of four times this season in a highly anticipated matchup.  Though Ball was selected three spots earlier, he has played better through the early stage of the season and it has become a hot topic to debate. Only exacerbated by the fact that Fox outplayed and beat Ball in the last NCAA tournament this past March. The Kings enter play trying to find any trace of consistency in their play. Going against their arch-rival Lakers that are also trying to maximize young assets. The Kings had a lot of motivation to win tonight.

When the Kings have played at their best this season, they played lockdown defense. That was how the night started for Sacramento. They opened the first quarter in impressive defensive fashion keeping Los Angeles to just 19 points in the quarter. Zach Randolph led an efficient offense early, pouring in 11 points, helping the Kings gain a 31-19 advantage after one quarter.

In the second quarter, the Kings kept the ball rolling on both ends of the court, outscoring the Lakers 23-22. This would maximize Sacramento’s lead and they would take a 13-point advantage going into halftime.  The Lakers ended up having a decent night offensively. Six players scored double digits and Ball had a double-double with 11 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. Fox’s stat line was not as flashy with 13 points, three assists, and four rebounds, but he played a crucial role in getting a much-needed Kings win. Especially considering a win over the Lakers always counts for more in Sacramento.

The Lakers gained a bit of momentum in the third quarter, but they would end up allowing 37 points in the fourth quarter. Willie Cauley-Stein had a great game off the bench scoring a season-high 26 points. The game’s final score was Sacramento defeating Los Angeles 113-102.

“I’m thankful for beating the Lakers,” Cauley-Stein said after the game. This was definitely a sentiment that was sure to be felt throughout the locker room tonight.

Kings Press Row Podcast: Week 6 in the NBA

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

press row podcast

hosts Lee Leonard and Charlie O. Mallonee

  • What’s happening in Week 6 in the NBA?

  • The Kings were blown out in Atlanta – how did they respond when they came home to face the Trail Blazers?

  • Sacramento lost to Denver – is that a cause for concern?

  • What’s coming up for the Kings? (hint: the battle of the rookie point guards!)

LonzoLV FOX

Coach suspended? Down two starters? Nuggets win in Sacramento regardless

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AP17325151609105
Denver Nuggets guard Emmanuel Mudiay (0) dries around Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox (5) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Sacramento, Calif., Monday, Nov. 20, 2017. (AP Photo/Steve Yeater)

By Morris Phillips

SACRAMENTO–A big second half propelled the short-handed Nuggets past the Kings at Golden 1 Center on Monday night, 114-98.  Will Barton and Gary Harris combined for 45 points as Denver’s offense hummed after the game was tied at the half.

Nine of Denver’s 15 made threes but only two of their 13 turnovers came after the break as the Nuggets led by double digits throughout the fourth quarter despite being without suspended coach Mike Malone and starters Paul Millsap and Wilson Chandler.

“The first half, we were sloppy with the ball at times and we allowed them to kind of stick around,” interim coach Wes Unseld Jr. said of the Nuggets. “We took care of it, continued to share the ball and we got great looks down the stretch.”

The Kings were led by George Hill and Kousta Koufos with 16 points apiece, and Zach Randolph and De’Aaron Fox with 12 each. The Kings allowed a huge disparity on the glass (49-34) and made just eight free throws, highlighting the two most glaring differences statistically.

“We’ve got to be more physical,” Coach Dave Joerger said of his Kings. “We were a step slow in the second half.”

The Kings had won three straight at home, but fell to a Nuggets team that was embarassed by the Lakers the previous night in Los Angeles. Overall, the Kings have lost five of six. Denver has won five of seven, and seven of 10.

Malone, the former Kings coach, was ejected on Sunday arguing a non-foul call in the loss to the Lakers. The Nuggets went on to lose 127-108. Millsap sprained his wrist in the loss, and Chandler was scratched due to lower back pain.

Same teams, different city with different result: Blazers down Kings 102-90

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings traveled to Portland to play the second game of a home and home, back-to-back set on Saturday night. The Kings hoped to make it two in a row over the Trail Blazers after their big win on Friday night. Those hopes would not be fulfilled.

The Blazers took their revenge on the Kings by winning game two 102-90. Portland combined strong defense with high-percentage shooting to prevent the Kings from ever having a real chance of winning the game.

PORTLAND (9-7)

Portland backcourt comes aliveELY_2788.CR2

 

The Trail Blazers starting guards – Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum – are the focal point of the Portland offense. If the two guards cannot be shutdown, the chances of beating “Rip City” becomes very problematic.

Against the Kings Saturday night, Lillard and McCollum combined to account for 47 of the Blazers 102 points.

McCollum scored a game-high 25 points shooting 9-for-16 overall and 4-for-7 from beyond the 3-point line. He also was a perfect 3-for-3 at the free throw line while dishing out four assists, grabbing four rebounds and making two steals.

Lillard posted 22 points hitting 8-of-18 shots from the field. He did have a rough night from long-range going just 1-for-8 from downtown. Lillard did convert 5-of-6 from the free throw line and recorded six assists.

Nurkic was a different player 

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Jusuf Nurkic was not factor on Friday night in Sacramento. On Saturday, the big man scored 14 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Nurkic was factor under the basket on both ends of the court.

Meyers Leonard was a real pain

A 7-foot-1 center is supposed to be parked down low near the basket – not if you are Meyers Leonard. Leonard is a long-range shooter who really does not have a great deal of skills under the bucket.

Leonard came off the bench to score 11 points for the Blazers. He shot 4-for-8 overall and hit 3-of-5 from beyond the 3-point line. Leonard also hauled in seven rebounds.

Rip City was on fire shooting the ball

Portland shot 54.3-percent (38-for-70) from the floor in the game while hitting 10-of-21 (47.6-percent)  three-point opportunites. The Blazers took advantage of the free throw line converting 16-of-21 opportunities from the stripe.

SACRAMENTO (4-12)

Cauley-Stein leads the way again

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Willie Cauley-Stein came off the bench for the Kings again on Saturday night and for the second game in a row he was the Kings high-scorer. The big man scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds against the Blazers.

Cauley-Stein went 1-for-1 from 3-point land. It was the first 3-point basket for Cauley-Stein of his NBA career.

Z-Bo is back

Big Zach Randolph did not score a point and looked tired on Friday night versus Portland. On Saturday night, he looked energized and ready to play. Randolph scored 17 points and pulled down five rebounds in his 21-plus minutes on the floor.

Randolph shot 6-for-11 overall including one 3-point basket. He went an impressive 4-for-5 from the free throw line.

Four guards scored in double figures

Frank Mason is making the most of his playing time. Saturday night he scored 13 points shooting 50-percent (5-for-10) from the field in his 19-minutes of playing time. Mason also added two assists.

George Hill had another strong game shooting 5-for-11 from the field and scoring 12 points. He converted 2-of-3 three-point opportunities.

Bogdan Bogdanovic showed signs that his shot may be coming back as he went 5-for-13 from the floor and hit 2-of-6 from downtown. His form has been looking good but the ball has just not been going through the hoop.

De’Aaron Fox got the start again as Dave Joerger went with the two point guard look once again. Fox scored 11 points in 27-minutes on the floor. Fox hit 5-of-9 from the floor and dished out two assists to go with two steals.

Almost everyone played

The Kings went with a 12-man bench for this game because Buddy Hield rolled his ankle on Friday night. The good news for Kings fans is that Hield was feeling much better on Saturday but was held out as a precaution. He is expected to be available for the game on Monday against Denver.

Only Justin Jackson did enter the game on Saturday night for the Kings. Jackson did not play on Friday versus the Blazers.

UP NEXT

KINGS

The Kings will return to action Monday night when they will host the Denver Nuggets at home. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 pm.

PORTLAND

The Trail Blazers head out on the road and will play in Memphis on Monday night.

 

 

There’s no place like home … Kings beat Portland 86-82 in SAC on Friday night

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
Portland Kings win
Cauley-Stein and Koufos helped lead the Kings to victory over Portland Photo USA Today Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

SACRAMENTO–After the horrific loss suffered by the Kings in Atlanta on Wednesday night, Dave Joerger knew he had to do something to stop the bleeding (losing) immediately or it could become a way of life for his young team. On Friday night, Joerger shook things up and it worked as the Kings beat the Portland Trail Blazers 86-82.

The loss not only shocked the Blazers but it stopped their two their two-game winning streak. Plus, Portland has to face this same Kings team on Saturday night at home. Which Kings team should they prepare for? Not necessarily the same Kings team they saw on Friday night. Sacramento is in experimental mode, so what happens one night may not be an indicator of what is going to happen in the next game.

Critics have been pointing their fingers at Sacramento saying they cannot win games in the NBA if they scoring in the eighties every game. They scored just 86 on Friday night but they played tenacious defense holding Portland to just 82 points. The infamous Rip City Ballers shot just 37-percent (30-for-81) overall and just 28-percent (7-for-25) from behind the 3-point line. Hard nosed defense was the key to the Kings victory.

Kings head coach Dave Joerger called it an emotional, bounce back win

De’Aaron Fox said defense was a point of emphasis going into the game

Willie Cauley-Stein said he had been waiting for the coaching staff to put Koufos and him together on the floor

The odds are against Sacramento on Saturday night

Road teams in the second games of back-to-back sets lose more often than they win. However, this road game has some advantages. It is only a 90-minute flight away. Portland is in the same time zone, and the Kings are coming off an emotional win that they might be able to ride for another 24 hours.

The game in Portland tips-off at 7 p.m.

The Trail Blazers will be back in Sacramento on February 29, 2018.

Kings lose third straight game in 126-80 laugher to Hawks

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Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins (20) has the ball knocked away by Sacramento Kings center Georgios Papagiannis (13) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2017, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

By: Ana Kieu

ATLANTA — The Sacramento Kings suffered a third straight loss in a 126-80 blowout by the Atlanta Hawks at Phillips Arena on Wednesday night.

The Kings were hoping to snap a two-game losing skid while the Hawks were in an even worse situation, losing four of their last five games. Unfortunately, Sacramento unable to achieve the goal they initially had in mind and Atlanta caught them off guard in a 126-80 blowout win on home court.

The Kings suffered a horrible loss, but at least they were savage from start to finish.

The Kings trailed by eight (24-16 Hawks lead) at the end of the first quarter.

Kosta Koufos’ field goal pulled the Kings within five (26-21 Hawks lead) with 10:50 left in the second quarter. But the Hawks offense came alive and that wasn’t an understatement as they finished the quarter with 40 points.

The Kings trailed the Hawks 64-35 at the end of the first half. But you can’t deny the fact the besieged team had some fun on Twitter during halftime.

The Kings’ misery didn’t stop in the second half as they continued to dig themselves into a hole in a 92-61 deficit to the Hawks at the end of the third quarter.

As expected, the Kings dug themselves in a hole and never got back up in what eventually became a 126-80 blowout loss to the Hawks at the end of regulation. Luckily, Sacramento will return home to host the Trail Blazers before a rematch at the Moda Center.

Notes
Kings’ starting lineup
George Hill
Garrett Temple
Willie Cauley-Stein
Bogdan Bogdanovic
Zach Randolph

Hawks’ starting lineup
Dennis Schroeder
Kent Bazemore
Dewayne Dedmon
Taurean Price
Luke Babbitt

Up Next
Kings return home to host the Trail Blazers on Friday, November 17 at 7 pm PST.

Hawks finish their homestand against the Celtics on Saturday, November 18 at 7:30 pm EST.

Kings Press Row Podcast: Week 5 in the NBA or Hard Times on the Road

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

press row podcast

with Charlie O and Lee Leonard

  • What’s scheduled to happen in Week 5 for the NBA?

  • What significant milestones will we celebrate this week?

  • What are the best games that we will be able to watch on national TV?

  • How well did the Kings play in New York & D.C.?

  • What do they have to do to win in the ATL?

  • What’s coming up for the Kings as they come home to Sacramento?

These topics and more on this edition of the Kings Press Row Podcast.

Kings drop second straight game in 110-92 loss to Wizards

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Sacramento Kings guard George Hill, right, and Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal reach for the ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Nov. 13, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

By: Ana Kieu

The final score was a little closer this time, but the Sacramento Kings dropped their second straight game in a 110-92 loss to the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena on Monday night.

The Kings were looking to bounce back after a rough 118-91 loss to the Knicks while the Wizards were searching for their third straight win.

Randolph did Randolph things early in the game. The Kings had a 17-12 with 6:15 left in the first quarter.

George Hill also had an impact as he made a three-pointer with 3:56 left. Hill finished with 13 points and the Kings led the Wizards 32-25 at the end of the first quarter.

The Kings and Wizards had a back-and-forth second quarter. Kelly Oubre Jr. dunked it home to put Washington back on top (36-34) with 9:05 left. Sacramento then regained the lead (41-40) just 2:14 later when De’Aaron Fox threw a pass to Buddy Hield, who put the ball in the basket for a three-pointer.

The Kings trailed the Wizards 57-51 at the half. The Washington offense was on fire as John Wall scored 16 points, Mike Scott scored 10 points and Oubre Jr. had seven points along with seven rebounds.

Here’s a fun fact: The Kings were off to a nice start from beyond the arc, shooting six-for-nine from the three-point range (courtesy of Coors Light).

The Wizards’ offense remained dominant in the second half. Wall led the team with 19 points, Marcin Gortat scored 18 points and Otto Porter Jr. had 15 points along with seven rebounds. The Kings fell into an even deeper hole in an 86-71 deficit after the third quarter.

It was closing time in the nation’s capital as the Wizards put the game out of reach with a 91-71 lead over the Kings at the 10:35 mark of the fourth quarter. Although Fox did beat the shot clock buzzer from deep at one point, Sacramento (3-10) was unable to complete a comeback and Washington (8-5) got what they wanted: a third straight win to cap off a four-game homestand.

Notes
Kings starters
George Hill
Bogdan Bogdanovic
Garrett Temple
Zach Randolph
Willie Cauley-Stein

Up Next
The Kings visit the Hawks on Wednesday, November 15 at 7:30 pm.

The Wizards visit the Heat on Wednesday, November 15 at 7:30 pm.