Holmes’ Big Night, Haliburton’s Double-Double Pace Kings Win Over Dallas
Apr 26, 2021, 9:34 PM | Updated: 9:37 pm
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
Sacramento used big performances from Tyrese Haliburton & Richaun Holmes to defeat the Mavs on Monday night
Minutes restriction?
Not a problem for Richaun Holmes.
The talented center for the Sacramento Kings poured in 24 points over just 25 minutes during a 113-106 win over Luka Dončić and the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night at Golden 1 Center.
With the win, Sacramento (25-36) improved to 3-2 over their last five contests.
Sacramento did not waste any time getting its offense going on Monday night, as the Kings would open things up with a 20-3 run to open up the first quarter.
Harrison Barnes tallied nine points in the first quarter while knocking down all three of his three-point attempts, as the Kings finished the opening period seven-of-11 from deep to take a 31-17 lead into the second quarter.
After a rough first quarter, Dallas would open up the second with a 32-21 run to erase Sacramento’s double-digit lead. Dallas guard Trey Burke’s 15 first half points would lead all scorers to help the Mavs cut the deficit to 59-52 at the halftime break.
The Mavericks used a solid third quarter (outscored Sacramento 33-28) to reduce the Kings lead to 87-85 heading into the final period.
Both teams would battle in the fourth, as the Kings lead would not grow larger than three points for a majority of the quarter.
With 4:30 remaining in the game, Sacramento used a quick 5-0 run to stretch its lead to 109-101 with 2:26 remaining after a huge triple from Buddy Hield gave the Kings some breathing room.
That mini-run would be all that the Kings would need to put the Mavericks away for good, as Sacramento would hang on for their second win against Dallas this season.
Behind a complete effort from the offense (51% FG, 44% 3PT, 88% FT) and a solid job by the defense (Dallas: 46% FG, 28% 3PT), the Kings picked up an impressive win over a Mavs team that is currently sixth in the Western Conference standings.
Rounding out the box score
Richaun Holmes had his strongest showing yet in his return from a hamstring injury, as the fan-favorite scored 24 points on nine-of-12 shooting, grabbed six rebounds and blocked two shots over just 25 minutes.
It was the 12th time this season that Holmes has topped the 20-point mark.
According to head coach Luke Walton, the 27-year-old was only going to be given around 20-25 minutes of playing time as Holmes works his way back from injury.
Harrison Barnes was dialed in up until he suffered an injury halfway through the third quarter, finishing with 19 points on seven-of-10 shooting from the field to go along with six rebounds and two assists over 24 minutes of playing time.
Barnes experienced abductor tightness and did not return after exiting, as the forward will be considered day-to-day going forward.
Coming into Monday night’s action, Barnes had posted 18.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists over his lat 12 games while shooting 52-percent from the field and 44-percent from the three-point line.
Tyrese Haliburton continued to wow in his role as starting point guard.
The rookie tallied his fourth double-double of the season, scoring 14 points to go along with a game-high 10 assists, five rebounds and three steals over 36 minutes of playing time.
As the season winds down over the final 11 games, one thing is certain:
Watching Tyrese Haliburton run the offense will have Kings fans excited for the young guard’s future.
In a role that seems to expand on a nightly basis, Chimezie Metu had another strong showing on Monday night.
The young forward scored nine points on four-of-six from the field over 14 minutes, giving the coaching staff yet another performance that should result in more minutes over the remaining 11 games.
Buddy Hield scored 16 points on four-of-seven shooting from three-point range, with his biggest shot coming late in the fourth to all but put the game away for Sacramento.
On the final day of his 10-day contract, Damian Jones added eight points, pulled down seven rebounds and dished out an assist over 23 productive minutes off of the bench.
The team will need to decide if they are to bring the veteran center back for the remainder of the season, or if they will let the former Golden State Warrior head into free agency to sign with another team.
Coming Up
The Kings have the day off on Tuesday before facing the NBA-best Utah Jazz on Wednesday night at Golden 1 Center.
In the only meeting between the two teams this season, Sacramento took a lead into the half before Utah would outscore the Kings 69-47 in the second-half en route to a 128-112 win in Salt Lake City back on April 10th.
You can find all of your Kings vs Jazz coverage right here on Sports 1140 KHTK starting at 3:00pm PST on The Jason Ross & Doug Christie Show prior to tip-off at 7:00pm PST.
Upcoming Sacramento Kings Schedule
- April 28 vs Utah Jazz
- April 30 @ Los Angeles Lakers
- May 2 @ Dallas Mavericks
- May 4 @ Oklahoma City Thunder
- May 5 @ Indiana Pacers
