Tatum leads Celtics to blowout win over Kings despite monster performance from Sabonis
Domantas Sabonis did something no one has done in a Kings uniform since DeMarcus Cousins, but it wasn’t nearly enough with De’Aaron Fox out of the lineup, Harrison Barnes out of sorts and Richaun Holmes suddenly out of the picture.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for 62 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a 126-97 victory over the Kings on Friday night at Golden 1 Center. Sabonis posted a monster double-double with 30 points, 20 rebounds and five assists. He became the first Kings player to finish with 30 points and 20 rebounds in a game since Cousins on Nov. 28, 2016, but the Kings were completely overmatched and never led against one of the hottest teams in the league.
“It was an uphill battle from the very start of the game,” interim Kings coach Alvin Gentry said. “It’s tough to do that against that team.”
Tatum finished with 32 points, five rebounds and four assists for the Celtics (43-28), who have won eight of nine and 20 of their last 24 to climb to fourth in the Eastern Conference. Tatum went 12 of 16 from the field and 7 of 10 from 3-point range, electrifying a crowd that included a large contingent of Celtics fans. Brown had his moments, too, scoring 30 points on 11-of-18 shooting.
Justin Holiday had his biggest game since coming to the Kings (25-49), who have lost 11 of 14 to fall five games behind the New Orleans Pelicans for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference. Holiday scored 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting with six 3-pointers. Trey Lyles added 19 points, six rebounds and four assists.
Barnes went 0 of 5 from the field in 24 minutes. He was held scoreless for the first time since Game 6 of the NBA Finals on June 16, 2016, when he was with the Golden State Warriors. Gentry said he didn’t have an explanation for the most recent performances from Barnes, who scored a total of 16 points on 5-of-13 shooting in the two previous games.
“I’m not really sure,” Gentry said. “We need him and we’re trying to get him going because obviously he’s really important to us.”
Before the game, the Kings announced Fox had been ruled out due to right hand soreness and Holmes would miss the rest of the season due to personal reasons. Holmes was not on the Sacramento bench. After the game, Gentry said Holmes will likely remain away from the team.
“Obviously, we’re 100% behind him and we’re going to do everything we can to help him get through it,” Gentry said.
Gentry elected to start rookie Davion Mitchell in place of Fox, who is considered day-to-day after sustaining the injury in Wednesday’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. Mitchell had 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting with two assists and four turnovers.
Sabonis said the Kings felt Fox’s absence from the outset.
“It was definitely hard,” Sabonis said. “He’s one of our leaders out there. He’s our point guard. He controls the pace of the game and he brings a lot to the team, so we definitely missed him out there. … We hope he gets healthy and he gets back as soon as he can.”
Sacramento trailed 11-0 after committing three turnovers in the first three minutes of the game. The Kings would make 7 of 9 from 3-point range in the opening period, but they still trailed 32-26 after finishing the first quarter with eight turnovers. The Celtics shot 64.3% from the field and made 11 of 19 from 3-point range to open up a 67-48 lead at the half.
Boston led by as many as 23 early in the second half. The Kings staged a 14-0 run to cut the deficit to nine late in the third quarter, but they couldn’t get any closer.
The Celtics shot 56.1% from the field and made 22 of 40 (.550) from 3-point range. The Kings shot just 41.8%. They were outscored 48-28 on points in the paint and 20-2 on fastbreak points.
“It’s tough playing without Fox,” Gentry said. “Just that initial surge that he gives us in transition and the pressure he puts on defenses at the rim creates shots for us, and obviously we missed that tonight.”
This story was originally published March 18, 2022 at 11:37 PM.
