Kings have just enough gas to win in San Antonio after mechanical problem in New Orleans
The Kings arrived in southern Texas about seven hours before their game against the San Antonio Spurs after a mechanical issue forced them to spend an extra night in New Orleans, and then they almost ran out of gas.
Sacramento sputtered and fell behind by four in the fourth quarter after leading by 19 in the third, but the travel-weary Kings still found a way to win in a 115-112 victory on Thursday night at AT&T Center.
“This is a really good win for us and it’s a team we’re trying to chase down to get in a playoff situation,” interim Kings coach Alvin Gentry said. “… The fact that we gave up a 19-point lead and still had enough focus and enough drive to get over the hump, I thought that was really good for us.”
Harrison Barnes scored 27 points on only eight field-goal attempts for the Kings (24-41), who showed tremendous resiliency after suffering a 30-point loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday. Barnes made 6 of 8 from the field, 4 of 5 from 3-point range and 11 of 14 at the free-throw line.
De’Aaron Fox had 26 points, six rebounds, nine assists and three steals with zero turnovers in 39 minutes. Domantas Sabonis added 12 points, 12 rebounds and six assists before fouling out in the final minute of the game.
Lonnie Walker IV came off the bench to score 30 points for the Spurs (24-39), who left coach Gregg Popovich one win away from tying Don Nelson’s NBA record of 1,335 wins. Dejounte Murray had 29 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists.
Sacramento gained a game on San Antonio in the Western Conference play-in race. The Kings are now 3 ½ games behind the Pelicans, 2 ½ games behind the Portland Trail Blazers and one game behind the Spurs for the final play-in spot in the West.
“I think the biggest thing for us was, looking at last night (against the Pelicans), that was a very important game for us and we didn’t rise to the occasion,” Barnes said. “We kind of let the game slip away in the second half … so coming into this game tonight, we knew that regardless of the situation, the travel, fatigue, whatever it may be, we just wanted to try to do what we can to get a win and keep our season afloat, and that’s what we did.”
They Kings stayed in New Orleans following a 125-95 loss to the Pelicans on Wednesday after a mechanical issue with their plane prevented them from flying to San Antonio. The team spent nearly four hours at the arena after the game waiting for a resolution before the NBA, which typically doesn’t permit same-day travel, told the Kings they could fly to San Antonio on Thursday to play the Spurs on the second night of a back-to-back.
“We got pretty much stuck in New Orleans last night,” Gentry said during his pregame news conference. “We had mechanical problems with the plane and the NBA ended up deciding we could stay for the night, so we ended up going to the hotel at about 2 o’clock in the morning, and then we got up this morning and came here.”
The Kings didn’t arrive in San Antonio until Thursday afternoon. Gentry admitted the delay disrupted the team’s routines and preparation for the game.
“Obviously, it affected the whole thing from the standpoint of (preparation),” Gentry said. “We would not have a shootaround on a back-to-back, but we would have a walkthrough, and we decided it was more important to have the guys rest.”
The Kings managed to summon the energy they needed in the first half. They went up 50-40 midway through the second quarter and carried a 64-51 lead into the halftime break. Sacramento shot 52.3% in the opening half, making 6 of 14 (.429) from 3-point range, while racking up 16 assists on 23 made baskets with only four turnovers.
The Kings went up 77-58 in the third quarter before the Spurs stormed back to take a 99-97 lead — their first lead of the game — on a basket by Murray with 5:01 to play in the fourth. The Kings trailed by four with four minutes remaining, but they regained the lead with a 9-0 run after coming up with a series of defensive stops.
“This is a game of runs, and they made their run, so at some point we had to stop the bleeding, and after a timeout, we were able to do that,” Fox said. “After that, I just think we were able to stay in the game and, ultimately, we finished the game out. I think with about four minutes left, we came up with four or five stops in a row, and those are things you have to do.”
The Kings agreed before the game they wouldn’t let their travel woes become an excuse for a poor performance, but Barnes, a 10-year NBA veteran, admitted the night presented a unique challenge.
“Today was definitely different,” he said. “There was that outlet pass that Fox threw to me, and mentally I caught that ball, but physically it just was not happening, so there were definitely some moments in that game where you just have the flight and the travel that you’re kind of seeing there, just trying to stay with it, but I’m just proud of our group for being able to come out here and get this win.”
This story was originally published March 3, 2022 at 11:29 PM.
