Tag: NBA

Kings Edge Spurs 115-112;Sac ends four game loss streak

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Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox (5) drives to the basket against San Antonio Spurs guard Joshua Primo (11) at the AT&T Center in San Antonio on Thu Mar 3, 2022 (AP News photo)

Kings Edge Spurs 115-112; Sac ends four game loss streak

By Barbara Mason

Last night the Sacramento Kings took what was probably their most disappointing loss all season to the New Orleans Pelicans. Before this game both teams were vying for the tenth seed and a chance to play in the postseason.

Lack of defense and turnovers were the main culprits in this loss. The win put the Pelicans into tenth place in the Western Conference. The loss dropped the Kings into 13th place.

Thursday night the Kings (24-41) took on San Antonio (24-39) in a game that highly favored the Spurs. The Spurs have a 24-38 record and sit in the twelfth spot in the Western Conference. After last night’s loss in a must-win scenario, the Kings needed to bounce back.

They really want to see if their win right now trades have made a difference. Tonight the defense has to show up and they need to protect the ball. Those will be the keys to this road game.

The Kings got a great start in the first quarter leading after one 30-27. Sacramento extended their lead at the half 64-51. De’Aaron Fox and Harrison Barnes both had a nice first half for the Kings.

The Spurs mounted a comeback in the third quarter outscoring the Kings 31-24. The Kings still led but it had dissolved significantly 88-82.

The Spurs continued to threaten the Sacramento lead in the fourth quarter. De Jounte Murray was having a great game with 21 points but the point leader through three for the Spurs was Lonnie Walker IV with 30 points off the bench.

At 7:45 San Antonio had tied the game at 91. Momentum was clearly on the Spurs side. With under four minutes left in the game San Antonio had taken the lead 103-101. With under two minutes left in the game the Kings had a slim 104-103 lead.

Sacramento took back the momentum in the closing minutes of the game winning 115-112. This game could not have been any closer and after leading through most of this game the Kings came dangerously close to losing it. Harrison Barnes was the point leader with 27 points for Sacramento.

The Kings will be on road in Dallas to take on Luca Doncic and the red-hot Mavericks Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 PM.

One Big Easy Win: Sacramento Gets Rolled By Pelicans 125-95

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New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) shoots over Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox (5) and Domantas Sobonis (10) at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans on Wed Mar 2, 2022 (AP News photo)

Sacramento Gets Rolled By the Pelicans 125-95

By Barbara Mason

Wednesday night two struggling teams met at Smoothie King Center. The Sacramento Kings (23-41) traveled to New Orleans to take on the Pelicans (26-36). They have both started the second half of the season on an improved note.

The Pelicans beat the Phoenix Suns 117-102 with CJ McCollum on a scoring spree. He is still working on his on-court chemistry with the Pelicans. New Orleans also beat the Lakers pretty handily 123-95. The Kings won their last game against the Thunder 131-110. The Pelicans handled the Kings on Wednesday night 125-95.

Both teams have made some nice changes to their roster. Changes for these two teams have been paying off nicely.

As expected these two teams played a very close first quarter. The Kings edged the Pelicans in the opening quarter 33-31. At the half the Pelicans had taken the lead 65-61. DeAaron Fox led the Kings with 17 points and Harrison Barnes turning in 15.

The Pelicans Brandon Ingram had a great first half with 24 points. Both teams got some great work from Domantas Sabonis (Kings) and Jonas Valanciunas (New Orleans) each with eight rebounds. They would both finish with 14 apiece.

The Pelicans would continue their role into the third quarter leading after three 96-82. New Orleans proved to be to hot to handle for Sacramento. Every one of their starters had double digits with Brandon Ingram shooting for 33 points. He was 15-of-19 which is a tough act to follow.

The high for the Kings was Fox with 25 points and Harrison Barnes shooting for 19. The Pelicans simply had a whole lot more fire power than Sacramento, as the Kings continue to struggle.

The Kings will now travel to San Antonio on Thursday night taking on the Spurs. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 PM.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: Warriors drop two consecutive games; Go to Dallas on Thursday night

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The Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) knows things are a little off kilter as the Minnesota Timberwolves guard Patrick Beverly (right) is enjoying the moment at the Target Center in Minneapolis on Tue Mar 1, 2022 (AP News photo)

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor:

#1 Dave, Karl-Anthony Towns really took the bull by the horns and help lead the Minnesota Timberwolves (34-29) to a 129-114 victory over the Golden State Warriors (43-19) with a leading 39 points on Tuesday night at the Target Center.

#2 The Wolves were able to slow the Warriors Stephen Curry’s outside shot keeping Curry to a minimum going 5-16 on the three point attempts. Curry finished with 34 total points.

#3 The Warriors who have now lost two straight games and losing four of their last five games face the Dallas Mavericks (37-25). The Mavs are coming off two straight wins after defeating the Warriors Sunday and the Lakers Tuesday night. How do you see the Mavericks and Warriors in Dallas on Thursday night?

Join David Zizmor for the Warriors podcasts on Wednesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Warriors Drop Second In a Row to Timberwolves 129-114

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Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) collides with Golden State Warriors center Kevon Looney as Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins, left, watches at the Target Center in Minneapolis on Tue Mar 1, 2022 (AP News photo)

Warriors Drop Second In a Row to Timberwolves 129-114

By Barbara Mason

Tuesday night the Golden State Warriors (43-19) took on the Minnesota Timberwolves (34-29) at Target Center. After Sunday’s game against the Mavericks, what we will see from the Warriors is the question of the day.

Will we see the mental mistakes that we saw Sunday? Will we see another meltdown? Will they start making those open shots? A lot of questions that will be answered tonight.

The team will still be missing Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala. The Timberwolves Anthony Edwards will not be starting tonight.

The Timberwolves led for most of the first half. After one quarter they led 34-27. The Warriors continued to hang around until the final minutes of the second quarter when Minnesota took their largest lead of the game 68-56.

More turnovers for Golden State and again missing those open shots was hurting the Warriors. The Timberwolves Karl-Anthony Towns had the high score for Minnesota with 20 points and D’Angelo Russell had 15 at the half. The Warriors were being tested defensively in this game. Kevon Looney had seven rebounds but also had three personal fouls at halftime.

The Warriors needed to slow down Towns in the second half and start hitting those open shots if they wanted to rebound and win this game.

In the third quarter the Warriors started hitting those open shots. After trailing by 12 the Warriors had cut the deficit to four points. Five Warriors were in foul trouble, Andrew Wiggins and Gary Payton with four so another obstacle that Golden State had to deal with.

Every time the Warriors would get close, the Timberwolves would come back and extend their lead. The Warriors had worked so hard to pull to within four only to watch Minnesota extend their lead back out to 12 points.

The biggest problem in this game was for every point that Minnesota gave up, the Timberwolves would make up offensively. The Warriors were unable to slow Towns or Russell. In the fourth quarter the Timberwolves had their biggest lead of the game at 18 with six minutes left in the game.

When you miss 17 open shots it makes it difficult to come away with a win. The Warriors were looking at their second loss in a row since the All-Star game. Golden State trailed by 20 plus for most of the final four minutes of the game. The final was 129-114.

Towns finished the game with 39 points and Stephen Curry had 34 for Golden State. The Timberwolves were just too much for the Warriors tonight. Golden State got beat offensively and defensively. This could possibly be a playoff match-up as we head into the playoffs. The Warriors are in a real rut that they have to shake off going into their next game.

The Warrior have dropped six of their last eight games as they head into Dallas Thursday night to take on the Mavericks. Tipoff is schedule for 5:30 pm PST.

Kings use big second half to knock off Thunder 131-110 in OKC

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Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox (5) shoots between Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2), forward Isaiah Roby (22) and guard Aaron Wiggins, right, at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on Mon Feb 28, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Monday, February 28, 2022

The Sacramento Kings (23-40) had six players in double-figures Monday, as the Kings traveled to Oklahoma City (19-42) and emerged with a 131-110 win over the Thunder.

The Kings (23-40) emerged from a 59-all halftime deadlock with a big second half, outscoring OKC 72-51 in the final 24 minutes after the Thunder opened the second half with a 9-0 run. The Kings battled back to take a 99-90 lead at the end of the third quarter.

Oklahoma City cut the Kings’ lead to 102-96 in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, but could get no closer, as Sacramento snapped a four-game losing streak.

DeAaron Fox led the Kings with 29 points and ten assists. Trey Lyles was next with 24 points, followed by Harrison Barnes with 23, and Domantas Sabonis with 14 points and 16 rebounds. Donte DiVincenzo and Davion Mitchell added 14 and 13 points, respectively, off the Sacramento bench.

DiVincenzo did his offensive damage in 22 minutes, and Fox’s ten assists matched his personal season high.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 37 points for the Thunder (19-42) to go along with seven rebounds, ten assists and three steals.

Oliver Sarr was next for OKC with 12 points, followed by Tre Mann with 11 and Vit Krejci with ten . Atemleksej Pokusevski finished with nine points, eight rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks.

The Kings continue their road trip on Wednesday against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Golden State Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason: Warriors suffer their four loss in seven games to Mavs 107-101

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Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, left, tries to dribble to the hoop against center Dwight Powell (7) screens Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Sun Feb 28, 2022 (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason:

#1 Barbara, talk about how close of game this was for Golden State (43-18) to the Dallas Mavericks (36-25) 107-101?

#2 The Mavericks Luka Doncic led the Mavericks was the go to guy leading with 34 points and Spencer Dinwiddie finished second in scoring for Dallas with 24 points.

#3 The Warriors Stephen Curry can do all the heavy lifting that he can but it just wasn’t enough to keep up with the Mavericks. Curry led Golden State with 27 points.

#4 Doncic was the key player for the Mavericks hitting two free throws with 7.9 seconds left in the game to help the Mavericks come back from 21 points down.

#5 Golden State has lost four of their last seven games and tip off against the Minnesota Timberwolves (32-29) on Tuesday night. The Wolves got crushed in their last game against the Philadelphia 76ers (36-23) 133-102. Minnesota is on a three game losing streak. How do you see the Wolves and Warriors Tuesday?

Join Barbara for the Warriors podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Warriors Lose A Stunner to Mavericks 107-101; Golden State drops fourth out of seven games

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Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) scores past Dallas Mavericks center Dwight Powell (7) at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Sun Feb 27, 2022 (AP News photo)

Warriors Lose A Stunner to Mavericks 107-101; Golden State drops fourth out of seven games

By Barbara Mason

Sunday the Golden State Warriors (43-18) took on the Dallas Mavericks (36-25) in a late afternoon game. The Warriors will be playing without Klay Thompson in the starting roster. Besides Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney, Gary Payton II and Moses Moody will round out the starters.

The keys to this game will as always be protecting the ball limiting the turnovers and most of all containing big man for the Mavericks Luca Doncic.

Golden State could not have started out this game any better with some great offensive and defensive work. After nine minutes there were no turnovers for the Warriors and they led by the score of 30-14. It was the best first quarter start the Warriors could have hoped for. Doncic was visibly frustrated and that’s exactly where you want to keep this guy.

As the first quarter came to an end the Warriors held a 37-24 lead. They had 10 assists and a single turnover. Wiggins had a great start with 11 points and Dallas’ Doncic had 10 points.

Golden State started the second quarter with a couple of forced runners on a team that is very stingy in that department. At half-time the Warriors held a 60-48 lead. They were doing a great job containing Doncic.

He had six turnovers, one assist and only three rebounds. He finished the first half with 12 points and also had a technical foul so the Warriors continued to frustrate Doncic.

The Warriors had an amazing first half with 30 points in the paint. Wiggins had 11 points and had Doncic right where he wanted him. It had been a great offensive and defensive effort in the first half for Golden State.

The Warriors continued to pile on the points in the third quarter leading 70-52 in the early minutes. The Mavericks had trimmed a 21 points deficit to single digits before the Warriors took back control of this game. After three Golden State led 88-74. Doncic had nine turnovers in this game which tied his career high.

The fourth quarter got uncomfortably close when Dallas got within three points trailing 93-90. The lead that Golden State had enjoyed had vanished and all the momentum was on the side of the Mavericks. There were 16 unanswered points for the Mavericks and Golden State had to pull it all together in the final six minutes as the Warriors went over six minutes without a field goal.

Dallas was coming up with some incredible defense. With 3.25 left in the game Dallas took their first lead. A real disaster was brewing after three amazing quarters for the Warriors. The Dallas Mavericks would pull this game out 107-101.

This was a horrible loss for the Warriors especially with the way that the team started this game off. It was the six minute drought that finished off Golden State. It was a fourth quarter that you do not want to ever repeat again. Dallas outscored the Warriors in the fourth quarter 33-13 in a stunner.

Curry had 33 points and Wiggins finished with 18. The missed points at the line was a huge factor for the Warriors. Luca Doncic had a 34 point night as the Mavericks walked away with this win.

The Warriors now will go on the road taking on the Timberwolves Tuesday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:00 PM.

Kings Falls Short Losing To Denver 115-110

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Sacramento Kings forward Justin Holiday (9) is fouled by Denver Nuggets forward Will Barton, right, at Ball Arena in Denver on Sat Feb 26, 2022 (AP News photo)

Kings Falls Short Losing To Denver 115-110

By Barbara Mason

Saturday night the Sacramento Kings (22-40) took on the Denver Nuggets (35-25). The Nuggets are sixth in the Western Conference while the struggling Kings are 13th in the Conference. Denver is heavily favored in this home game at Ball Arena.

The Kings will be without Richaun Holmes and will rely heavily on De’Aaron Fox. They will have the unenviable task of containing Denver’s Nikola Jokic.

After one quarter the Nuggets had taken a 38-30 lead over the Kings. The Nuggets were able to maintain the lead until the final minutes of the second quarter when the Kings really began to heat up. With a little over two minutes left in the half, the Nuggets led by nine points.

The Kings would chip away at the Denver lead and with one minute left in the second quarter trailed by a single point. At halftime the Kings had tied the game at 59.

This was a real turn of momentum for the Kings, momentum that they needed to take into the third quarter. De’Aaron Fox led Sacramento with 13 points followed by Harrison Barnes with nine points. Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 16 points and Monte Morris finished the half with 14 points.

With under three minutes left in he third quarter the Kings had kept up the pressure on the Nuggets leading 84-77. Big man Domantas Sabonis had eight rebounds and seven assists through three quarters and it was the defensive play of Sacramento that was keeping them in this game. After three quarters the game was dead even at 85 points apiece.

The Nuggets would start the fourth quarter with a 9-0 run taking a 94-85 lead in the early minutes of the final quarter. The Kings would start to chip away at Denver’s lead cutting the Nuggets advantage to 94-92. With under two minutes left in the game it was again tied at 107. At 39.8 this game remained tied at 110.

The game would turn out to be the last team with the ball coming a with the win. The Kings had every chance to win this game but just could not hang with the Nuggets at the very end. The final was 115-110 in favor of Denver.

Fox had the high score for the Kings with 26 points and Barnes finished with 24. Jeremy Lamb had 12 off the bench and Sabonis had a great game with 16 rebounds.

Next up for the Kings will be a meeting with the Thunder Monday night in Oklahoma. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:00 PM.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Ukrainian Kings player Alex Len condemns Russian attack on Ukraine; plus more

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Sacramento Kings Alex Len is most concern

On the Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 Jeremiah with the Russian attack on Ukraine this week the Sacramento Kings (22-38) Alex Len and Toronto Raptors player Svi Mykhailiuk both from the Ukraine condemn the attack on their country and said “A great tragedy has befell our homeland Ukraine.”

#2 For Len this has to be weighing heavily on his mind each time he goes out on the basketball court?

#3 Jeremiah, after the Kings acquired Domantas Sabonis what will that mean for Richaun Holmes who was rumored to be on the trade block?

#4  Sobonis didn’t hold back landing second on the Kings leaderboard behind Fox on Wednesday fending of the Bulls defense and scoring 22 points.

#5 Jeremiah, after a week off or seven days how important is that for the Kings to have had that rest?

Join Jeremiah who covers Kings basketball on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Mike Can Coach!: Malone makes history in Nuggets 128-110 win over the Kings

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By Morris Phillips

SACRAMENTO–Doing big things after leaving the Sacramento Kings has a familiar ring. Isaiah Thomas, DeMarcus Cousins and Rajon Rondo did that. Tyrese Haliburton is a pretty good bet to do that. And Mike Malone might be the best example of that and he’s not even an NBA player.

Remember Malone? Not even his working relationship and belief in the mercurial Cousins could save his head coaching job eight years ago. The Kings fired Malone in 2015 after the team went 39-67 in a rough season and a sluggish start to the next. And Malone picked himself up and moved to Denver, where he’s won 300 games in seven seasons, culminating with the milestone win at Golden 1 Center Thursday night, 128-110 over the Kings.

“This is a tough business,” a proud Malone said after the game. “I got fired in my first job. I’ve seen my father get fired. This business is not for the weak-minded. Here’s to 300 more.”

That Malone has racked up the wins in Denver with a defensive mindset, and a versatile center who plays like Cousins in reigning MVP Nikola Jokic couldn’t sit well with the Kings’ leadership. While Malone continues to do with Denver what many think he could have done in Sacramento had there been more patience, the Kings are floundering defensively, allowing a league-worst 115 points per game after allowing 128 in their first game since the All-Star break.

“Against a team like that, if you turn it over they’re going to convert on the other end. In that fourth quarter they made a couple of 3s in a row that really hurt us,” Domantas Sabonis said.

The Kings trailed by as many as 13 points in the third, but rallied to within five, 92-87 at the end of the quarter. But the hosts became even more generous in the fourth, allowing 36 points as Denver ran away.

Jokic led the Nuggets with 25 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists as his 34 minutes of floor time was the only hindrance to him posting a triple-double. Will Barton and Monte Morris added 31 and 19 points respectively as Malone’s big victory was engineered by his three, most tenured players.

Sabonis led the Kings 33 points and 14 rebounds, and his 15 for 23 shooting was a major reason the Kings stayed within range for three quarters. De’Aaron Fox had 20, and Harrison Barnes 14 giving the Kings a balanced attack, inside and out. What hurt them was 20 misfires from distance, with ten, different Kings missing at least one 3-point attempt.

“We have to shoot the ball better,” coach Alvin Gentry said. “We had a lot of open looks we missed and they came down and converted. That’s where the separation starts.”

The Kings fell to 22-39 with 21 games remaining in their season. Their prospects for a 10th place finish aren’t great, but they could improve if the club can win at New Orleans and San Antonio next week, two of the three clubs ahead of them in the standings that must be displaced.

CRISIS IN UKRAINE TOUCHES SACRAMENTO: Kings’ center Alex Len and Svi Mykhailiuk of the Toronto Raptors issued a joint statement before the game that impassionately placed both natives of Ukraine in support of their homeland in the face of the Russian invasion of the Eastern Europe country.

“We pray for our families, friends, relatives and all the people who are in the territory of Ukraine. We hope for an end to this terrible war as soon as possible. Dear fellow Ukrainians, hold on! Our strength is our unity! We are with you.”