Sacramento Kings Overcome Slow Start, Earn First Home Win of Season
Oct 25, 2018, 12:00 AM | Updated: Jan 4, 2019, 11:36 am
(Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
by Matt George – Sports 1140 KHTK Reporter
Just 24 hours after falling to the Nuggets in the Mile High City, the Sacramento Kings returned to the Golden 1 Center for their first back-to-back of the season against the Memphis Grizzlies. It was a sluggish start offensively, the Kings playing very one-dimensional, attack-the-rim offense, but they overcame it by outscoring Memphis 53-40 in the 2nd half. Sacramento earned their first home win, and are now 2-3 on the season, by a final of 97-92.
De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield, who struggled Tuesday in Denver, responded with a combined 44 points. Hield played a career-high 41 minutes, shooting 50% from the field. His offensive spark started Sacramento’s good 2nd half.
“I’ve been working, keeping my body in shape, conditioning,” Hield said following the game, “No matter if I play 41 minutes or 28 minutes, I’m ready”.
Head coach Dave Joerger emphasized the importance of tonight game, sharing that the difference between a 2-3 start and 1-4 start is huge mentally.
“It was kinda a must-win for us. Cauley-Stein just played against five of the best bigs in the league and showed that he belongs.”
Cauley-Stein finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds along with two steals, while Fox provided eight rebounds and six assists along with his 21 points.
Gasol wanted no part of @swipathefox 😱 pic.twitter.com/VGUpl5W9HQ
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2018
“I was looking at (tonight) as a make-up game” said Fox, “We are getting the ball up and down the court and that’s how we want to play. If we are going to make mistakes, do it at 100 miles-per-hour”.
The Kings defense deserves a lot of credit for keeping them in this game. During the rough start offensively, the Kings managed to keep the game close. In the 3rd quarter, Sacramento held Memphis to just 19 points, the first time they have held any team under 20 in a quarter this season. The Grizzlies shot just 42% on the night, including 33% from beyond the arc.
Sacramento hosts the Washington Wizards Friday night before heading back on the road for meetings with the Miami Heat, Orlando Magic, and Atlanta Hawks. A lot of winnable games on the horizon for Marvin Bagley’s young team.
“We just got to figure out how to keep this thing rolling. It’s so much fun playing like that.”
