Yikes: Jazz Pummel Kings In Laugher; Set Franchise Record For Points In A Game
Apr 28, 2021, 9:38 PM | Updated: 10:17 pm
(Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images)
(Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images)
Utah established a franchise-record for points in a game during a forgettable night at Golden 1 Center
Well…at least it was a fun first quarter…right?
…No? Yeah. Okay.
Even without two of their starters, the Utah Jazz showed why they currently hold the best record in the NBA as they would handily defeat the Sacramento Kings by a final of 154-109 at Golden 1 Center on Wednesday afternoon.
Utah established a new franchise-record in points scored in a single game, scoring 154 points on 24-of-41 shooting from beyond the three-point line.
With the loss, Sacramento falls to 25-37 with 10 games remaining in the 2020-21 season.
If you were to only watch the first quarter of Wednesday night’s game between Sacramento and Utah, you would have seen some competitive basketball.
Buddy Hield scored 12 points to help keep the Kings close, as the Jazz would take a 30-27 lead into the second quarter.
Then…well, things got bad.
Utah turned the heat up and they would do it fast, opening up the period with a 23-2 run to take a commanding lead. Sacramento’s offense would struggle and the defense would continue to perform atrociously as the Jazz went into the halftime break with a 76-44 lead after outscoring the Kings 46-17 in the second quarter.
It was without a doubt the ugliest half of basketball that the Kings had played this season–in front of 1,600-plus paid attendees at Golden 1 Center.
The second half would not be much kinder to Sacramento, as the Jazz would score 40 points once again in the third quarter to stretch their lead to 116-74 heading into the fourth.
Utah would lead by as many as 54 points en route to handing the Kings their worst home loss in franchise history.
Both starting members of the Jazz backcourt were inactive on Wednesday night, with Donovan Mitchell (ankle) and Mike Conley (hamstring) both out due to inury.
Sacramento was without De’Aaron Fox (health & safety protocols), Harrison Barnes (abductor soreness) and Marvin Bagley III (hand), but the effort that was put on display by the members of the team that were able to play was beyond disappointing.
The Kings defense–as has been the case all season long–was unable to extinguish a red-hot Jazz offense.
“Honestly, it’s embarrassing,” Richaun Holmes said of the loss postgame. “There are no explanations or justifications of losing a game by 50 points. I don’t care who’s out. We are all professional basketball players. There are no justifications.”
With matchups on the horizon against the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks this weekend, Sacramento could be in for a rough stretch without their key contributors.
As the season winds down with just 10 games remaining, maybe losing games isn’t the worst thing as the Kings look to creep into the top-six in the NBA lottery (currently seventh).
Losing games by almost 50 points, however, will never be an ideal situation.
Rounding out the box score
Richaun Holmes continues to post strong numbers–even while playing under a minutes restriction.
The talented center finished with a team-high 18 points on nine-of-15 shooting over 23 minutes of action, showing his offensive touch around the basket against Jazz center Rudy Gobert–arguably the best rim protector in the league.
Buddy Hield added 18 points (six-of-12 from the field) to go along with five rebounds, seven assists, three blocks and two steals in the loss.
Justin James established a new career-high, scoring 16 points on six-of-eight shooting from the field over 17 minutes of playing time.
Tyrese Haliburton scored 13 points and dished out eight assists while shooting six-of-14 from the field.
Due to Harrison Barnes (abductor tightness) sitting out against Utah, Chimezie Metu was tapped for the first start of his NBA career. Metu added six points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals over 34 minutes.
In his first appearance since March 13th, rookie guard Jahmi’us Ramsey set a new career-high with seven points (three-of-five from the field) over just six minutes.
Injury Updates
Harrison Barnes will be out for at least “the next couple of games” due to abductor tightness, head coach Luke Walton disclosed to the media during his pregame media session.
Barnes departed Monday night’s game against the Dallas Mavericks in the third quarter after experiencing discomfort and did not return.
Marvin Bagley III’s status was upgraded from “out” to “doubtful” prior to Wednesday night’s contest against Utah. The young forward could return as soon as this weekend depending on how he feels after working out on Thursday.
Walton shared that Bagley has participated in full-contact three-on-three and that he could return soon if he feels good after running through another workout.
Coming Up
Sacramento will travel to STAPLES Center to face the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night in the final showdown of the season between the two teams.
A shorthanded Lakers team routed the Kings back on April 2nd at Golden 1 Center, as Kyle Kuzma scored 30 points in a 115-94 win for a Los Angeles team that was without LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Davis has since returned from an injured calf and will likely be in the lineup come Friday night.
Be sure to tune in for all of the action right here on Sports 1140 KHTK, with pregame coverage beginning at 3:00pm PST on The Jason Ross & Doug Christie Show prior to a 7:00pm PST tip-off from Los Angeles.
Upcoming Sacramento Kings Schedule
- April 30 @ Los Angeles Lakers
- May 2 @ Dallas Mavericks
- May 4 @ Oklahoma City Thunder
- May 5 @ Indiana Pacers
- May 7 vs San Antonio Spurs
