Kings put up huge opening half, but it wasn’t enough to help them reach 40 wins

The Kings looked like they were on their 40th victory after a huge first half. Once the starters sat out for the rest of the night, the tables quickly turned.

The Trail Blazers, who ran with just six players Wednesday, stormed past the Kings after the break, rallying from 28 points down to win 136-131 for their 11th consecutive home victory over Sacramento.

“Certainly a tale of two halves,” Kings coach Dave Joerger said. “Tip your hats to those guys, (the Blazers) played very, very well tonight.”

Marvin Bagley III came off the bench to score 20 points for the Kings (39-43), who blew their second 28-point lead in two weeks and went just 9-16 after the All-Star break.

“We had 39 wins this year,” Joerger said. “Really proud of our group and surpassed a lot of people’s expectations and (we) don’t want one half or a couple of weeks of basketball here that we’ve struggled with to taint that big picture, good feeling and successful season.”

Former Kings forward Skal Labissiere, in his first start of the season, had a season-high 29 points and 15 rebounds for the Trail Blazers (53-29). Anfernee Simons led Portland with 37 points.

The Kings scored 87 points before the break, which is two fewer than the 89 put up by the Cincinnati Royals on March 12, 1970, in a 165-151 home win over the San Diego Rockets.

The NBA record for scoring in a half is 107, set by the Phoenix Suns on Nov. 10, 1990. They went for 50 and 57 in the first and second quarters en route to a 173-143 win over the visiting Denver Nuggets.

The Kings also hit 13 3-pointers, including three by Buddy Hield, in the first 24 minutes to set a new franchise mark for a half. However, they were just 5 of 23 from outside the arc after halftime.