The Race Is On: Fox, Kings Pull To Within Three Games Of Eighth Seed
Feb 28, 2020, 7:56 PM | Updated: Feb 29, 2020, 8:23 am
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
De’Aaron Fox returned from a one-game absence and paved the way for Sacramento’s biggest win of the season
The Sacramento Kings squandered a huge opportunity to gain ground in the race for the eighth seed in the Western Conference when they blew a big lead to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night.
With less than 24 hours before playing their biggest game of the season, they needed a shot in the arm for Friday’s game in Memphis.
Enter, De’Aaron Fox.
Fox returned to the lineup for Sacramento to lead them to their biggest win of the season over the eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies, winning by a final of 104-101 at the FedEx Forum in Memphis.
With the win, Sacramento (25-34) has cut the Grizzlies’ lead on the eighth and final spot in the Western Conference playoff race to three games.
Fox, who missed Thursday night’s game in Oklahoma City due to an abdominal injury, also had his left-shoulder taped up in his return to the floor. Injuries didn’t appear to slow the rising star down in slightest, as he finished with 25 points, four rebounds and five assists over 33 minutes of action.
Memphis got off to a great start early, taking a nine-point lead into the second-quarter as Sacramento struggled to knock down shots. The Kings would respond, outscoring the Grizzlies 29-17 in the second-quarter to take a 60-57 lead into the break.
The Kings would go on a run, leading by as many as 11 points in the third-quarter before Memphis responded with a run of their own to keep things close.
Sacramento kept control of the game into the fourth-quarter, as Fox seemingly put the game away with a floating jump-shot to take a 102-96 lead with 54 seconds remaining.
Things got dicey late for the Kings, as they turned the ball over twice in-a-row out of inbound passes and allowed the Grizzlies to cut the deficit to 102-101 with 10 seconds remaining. Out of a timeout, Buddy Hield scrambled from defenders until an intentional foul was called with 4.4 seconds remaining, sending Hield to the line for two free-throws.
Hield would hit both, and Memphis guard Tyus Jones missed a game-tying three-point attempt as time expired to give the Kings the win.
Off of the Kings bench, Hield finished with 14 points and four rebounds for the Kings, while Nemanja Bjelica had another double-double performance with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Harry Giles III scored 15 points and grabbed five rebounds in the hard-fought win.
Sacramento’s trade deadline acquisitions continued to make huge impacts on Friday night.
Alex Len played another solid game for the Kings, finishing with six points, seven rebounds and a blocked shot over 16 minutes of play. Kent Bazemore contributed with 13 points and four rebounds on five-of-nine shooting from the field over 29 minutes.
With 23 games left, things are about to get really interesting for the Sacramento Kings.
Buckle up, Sacramento.
Coming Up
Sacramento will return home this Sunday when they take on Bradley Beal and the Washington Wizards in a matinee at Golden 1 Center.
Sunday marks the first game of a long stretch of games at Golden 1 Center, as the Kings will play seven of their next eight games at home.
Catch all of the action right here on Sports 1140 KHTK, starting with pregame coverage at 2:30pm with tip-off following at 3:00pm.
