Sacramento Kings Domantas Sobonis (10) tries to take a shot against the Phoenix Suns Just Nurkic (20) during the first half at the Footprint Center in Phoenix on Fri Dec 8, 2023 (AP News photo)
By Barbara Mason
The Sacramento Kings (12-8) had a bit of a slow start in the first half of their matchup against the Phoenix Suns (12-10) trailing 59-50. They really got onboard in the second half winning the third quarter 33-12. The final was 114-106 extending Sacramento’s season record to 12-8.
Friday night, the Kings took on Suns at Footprint Center. The Kings come into this game after losing to the New Orleans Pelicans in the quarterfinal game of the NBA In-season tournament 127-117 on Mon Dec 4. The Suns also lost last Tuesday in their quarterfinal game against the Los Angeles Lakers in a close one 106-103. Both teams are looking to get back on the winning track.
Game recap: Both the first and second quarters went in favor of the Suns. The two opening quarters were close but Phoenix had the upper hand. The Suns won the first quarter 26-24 as well as the second quarter 33-26. Phoenix took a 59-50 lead into the locker room at the half. So far it was all Phoenix in the first half.
The Kings turned this game around in the third quarter winning it 33–12 in a blowout and took the lead after three quarters 83-71. Sacramento really got their offense going from the field as well as from downtown.
Both teams were protecting the ball well but the Kings were also rebounding the ball with more success than the Suns. The Kings needed to keep the pressure on the Suns going into the fourth quarter.
These are two evenly matched teams and the final quarter of this game would be a battle. So far in this game, the Sacramento starting roster was not really up to par although there was still one more quarter of basketball to play.
The team would need their clutch player De’Aaron Fox to step up and finish this game. Kevin Huerter played 17 minutes through three quarters but was a disappointing 0-4 from the field. He came off the court with a single point in the game.
The fourth quarter saw Fox start to really heat up. With under six minutes left in the game he had 26 points to his credit. Off the bench the Kings got some great work from Malik Monk with 13 points and Sasha Vezenkov with 14.
With 5:31 left in the game Sacramento had taken a 103-92 lead. The Suns got dangerously close with 4 1/2 minutes left in the game 103-96. The Kings were letting the Suns back into the game. Sacramento took command of this game in the final minutes and left the Suns in the dust.
Fox caught fire in the fourth quarter scoring fifteen points and finishing with 34 points in this game. Domantas Sabonis had 15 points and 17 rebounds. They also got some nice bench work from Vezenkov, Monk and Keon Ellis. This was a solid win for Sacramento against a tough contender.
Next up for the Kings will be the Brooklyn Nets at Golden 1 Center in a close matchup. Tipoff for this game Monday night is scheduled for 7:00 PM.
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2023-12-09 04:55:06 , Sacramento Kings – Sports Radio Service