Kings Offense Can’t String Together Baskets, Fall to Toronto Raptors

by Matt George – Sports 1140 KHTK Reporter

Coming off of a momentum-killing blowout loss in Milwaukee, the Sacramento Kings returned home Wednesday night against the 10-1 Toronto Raptors, tipping off a brutal 10-game stretch. Despite building an early eight point lead, Sacramento couldn’t keep up the pace, falling to the Raptors 114-105.

The pace was to the Kings’ liking early, but Toronto defensive adjustments mixed with a staggering amount of foul calls, knocked Sacramento out of their groove. The officiating crew wasn’t the most popular among Kings fans, players, and coaches. Dave Joerger and Nemanja Bjelica were each issued a technical foul. The Raptors weren’t too pleased either, after Danny Green was issued a flagrant foul for an inadvertent elbow to Buddy Hield’s face. There were 46 total personal fouls called in this game.

The Raptors built up their lead with a 35-25 2nd quarter, and the Kings struggled to make up any ground. There were a couple instances in the 2nd half when Sacramento managed to trim the lead down to single-digits, but the Raptors showed their superiority, quickly halting momentum with a big bucket and defensive stop.

Hield overcame a rough shooting start, scoring 24 points, which was tied with Willie Cauley-Stein for most on the team. De’Aaron Fox turned in 20 points and four assists, but turned the ball over five times. In his first game of the season, after multiple knee surgeries this summer, Bogdan Bogdanovic returned to action with seven points, two rebounds and an assist in 18 minutes.

Kawhi Leonard missed the last two games for the Raptors, but managed a game-leading 25 points in his return. Toronto now improved to a franchise-best 11-1 on the year.

The Kings continue their four-game homestand Friday night as the host the Minnesota Timberwolves, followed by a meeting with the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday.

Newsletter