Trey Day: Lyles’ huge fourth quarter lifts Kings past Rockets

Jan 11, 2023, 6:56 PM | Updated: 11:18 pm

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 11: Keegan Murray #13 and Trey Lyles #41 of the Sacramento Kings r...

(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Sacramento Kings Beat Writer

Not all winning efforts are pretty, but they all look the same in the win column.

Wednesday night’s matchup between the Sacramento Kings and Houston Rockets had little re-watch value through three-quarters of play, but the fourth brought some excitement to a game that lacked enthusiasm for the first 36 minutes of play.

Kings forward Trey Lyles was the driving force behind a massive fourth quarter from a Sacramento offense that outscored Houston 40-21 while shooting 64 percent from the field and 60 percent from three-point range. Lyles’ 15 points and six boards in the final period alone acted as a shot in the arm to help lift the Kings to a 135-1115 win at Golden 1 Center.

Lyles, who was awarded the Defensive Player of the Game chain, also tied his career-high for points in a single quarter during a season-high 20-point performance over just 21 minutes of action.

With the win, Sacramento improved to 22-18 and jumped to fourth place in the Western Conference standings.

Trey Day in Sacramento 🤩 pic.twitter.com/IVsqCwHL9n

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 12, 2023

Until Lyles’ closing heroics in the fourth, it looked like the Kings had another ‘playing with your food’ type of finish on the horizon as they struggled to put the Rockets in a hole all night. Houston (10-31) entered play with the NBA’s worst record and on a seven-game losing streak, but they challenged Sacramento late as they took a 101-100 lead with less than nine minutes to go.

Then, it was Lyles time.

The 27-year-old erupted for 15 points on a perfect five-of-five shooting from the field and three-of-three from three-point range, while usual Kings closer De’Aaron Fox acted as a distributor and handed out six of his nine assists in the fourth.

Sacramento mounted a 22-4 run to put the game out of reach as over 16,000 fans in attendance chanted ‘Light The Beam’ during the closing minutes. As rough as the first three quarters were for the Kings, the defense ramped up its intensity in the fourth as they held the Rockets to 20 points on 35 percent shooting from the field.

Lyles’ six rebounds and two blocks during the fourth quarter helped seal the victory and also secured his first Defensive Player of the Game chain honors of the season.

#BeamTeam pic.twitter.com/RRcifE6AVv

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) January 12, 2023

“Trey was fantastic for us,” Kings head coach Mike Brown said of Lyles’ performance on Wednesday.

“He plays so hard when he’s out there. Big, big game. He was the one that really helped us get over the hump. He’s just a pro and as many guys you can have on your team that are pros, you want them there. They got to understand it’s a marathon, not a sprint, and they got to stay even-keeled. Trey is one of the best at that.”

Fox, who had closed several games this season, did score nine points and hand out six dimes during the fourth quarter, but the guard said his goal was to feed the red-hot Lyles down the stretch.

“Just the way that they were playing him, it’s really just trying to get him the ball where he can just catch it and shoot it,” Fox said of finding Lyles late in the game. “That’s been an emphasis for us in practice.”

Defense has been a point of emphasis for Brown and an Achilles heel for Sacramento, as Brown told the media before Monday’s game that he decided not to hand out his monthly Defensive Player of the Month award due to his team’s poor efforts in December.

Although the Kings had another rough showing on the defensive end against a Houston team that ranks 29th in points per game (109.1), Brown applauded his team’s defensive performance late in the game when it mattered most.

“Our guys stepped up on the defensive end in the fourth quarter,” Brown said. “Our fourth-quarter defense was unbelievable. Outscoring them 41-20 while continuing to apply pressure on the defensive end, that’s what good teams do.”

As Brown said, good teams win games like Wednesday’s. If Sacramento wants to stay on its current course as a top-five team in the Western Conference, they need to win games they “should” win. Monday’s win over the Orlando Magic and tonight are against Houston fall under that umbrella, as those two wins have pushed the Kings into fourth place in the conference.

“We feel like we’re a good team, but we feel like we can be a whole lot better than we are,” Fox said of the Kings moving up in the standings. “It’s good. I’m happy that we aren’t lower, but I feel like we can be better. We have a long way to go.”

De'Aaron hits a big triple 🎯 pic.twitter.com/VHBHgfQy7u

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 12, 2023

With nearly half of the regular season in the books, Sacramento already has 22 wins in the tank, as they very well could equal or surpass last season’s win total (30) before the end of the month.

If they want to do that, they’ll have to continue to capitalize on a soft portion of their schedule that includes another matchup against the Rockets on Friday at Golden 1 Center before facing the San Antonio Spurs (13-29), Los Angeles Lakers (19-22), and Oklahoma City Thunder (18-23).

Sabonis Keeps It Going

It seems effortless at this point.

Domantas Sabonis racked up his 18th-straight double-double before the end of the second quarter as the big man finished the win with 25 points (9/12 FG), 14 rebounds, and nine assists over 38 minutes.

Sabonis, who continues to dominate games while playing with a broken thumb, is tied with two-time MVP Nikola Jokic for the NBA lead in 20-10-5 games this season. The 26-year-old also leads the entire league with 30 double-doubles over 39 appearances.

Just another day at the office for Domantas Sabonis.

Clear the way for Domas 😤 pic.twitter.com/SLX6Y0M8IC

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 12, 2023

The Best of the Rest

De’Aaron Fox finished the night with 24 points (9/18 FG), nine assists, and one steal over 32 minutes in another strong showing for the All-Star hopeful.

Keegan Murray continued his streak of 15+ point games as the rookie scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds during the win. Mike Brown said that he has been challenging Murray to rebound more, and the 22-year-old has responded by grabbing five or more boards in three of his past five games.

Harrison Barnes added 16 points on five-of-10 shooting from the field over 33 minutes of action. The veteran forward has scored 16+ points in six-straight games.

Injury Updates

Kevin Huerter (non-COVID illness) was inactive for Wednesday night’s game. The 24-year-old is considered day-to-day.

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Next Game

Sacramento will conclude a five-game home stand on Friday night when they wrap up a two-game set against the Rockets at Golden 1 Center.

Be sure to get all of your Kings vs. Lakers coverage on Sactown Sports 1140 starting at 5:30 pm PST on Game Night before action tips off at 7:00 pm PST from downtown Sacramento.