Kings owner Vivek Ranadive hugs Domantas Sabonis after ‘monster’ game in win over Warriors
When the buzzer sounded to signal the end Sunday night in Sacramento, Kings owner Vivek Ranadive bounded out of his courtside seat to greet Domantas Sabonis with a hug following his performance in a win over the Golden State Warriors.
“He was just hyped,” Sabonis said. “He’s here every game. He watches every game. He’s courtside, and just to get this winning streak going … he just came out there and wanted to hug me, so I was like, ‘OK, let’s go.’ He’s fun. It’s awesome having your owner around and supporting you.”
Sabonis posted season highs of 26 points and 22 rebounds with eight assists in a 122-115 victory over the Warriors. He recorded his eighth double-double of the season and his fifth in the past six games. He is the first player in the NBA this season to post 25 points and 20 rebounds in a game.
Sabonis became the fifth player in franchise history to record at least 25 points, 20 rebounds and eight assists in a game. He was the first Kings player to put up a 25-20-8 stat line since Chris Webber did it on Nov. 23, 1999.
In three games against the Warriors this season, Sabonis has averaged 21.3 points, 13.3 rebounds and 6.0 assists while shooting 81.8% at the free-throw line.
“Domas was a monster,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “He was a monster in the paint. He was a monster on the glass. You need games like that from your stars in order to get over the hump from time to time.”
De’Aaron Fox had 22 points, eight assists and three steals for the Kings (6-6), who have won six of eight to reach .500 after losing their first four games. Fox scored 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting to help the Kings close out the Warriors in the fourth quarter.
Keegan Murray, a rookie who has been troubled by a recent family medical issue, continued to thrive in the friendly confines of Golden 1 Center. Murray scored 21 points while going 5-of-9 from 3-point range.
Kevin Huerter added 17 points, five rebounds and four assists. Malik Monk, who again wore a band-aid under his right eye as he continues to recover from a scratch on his cheek, came off the bench for 12 points and four assists.
Ranadive and associate head coach Jordi Fernandez joined scores of fans who wore band-aids in solidarity with Monk, who gave the order to light the purple Kings victory beam during his courtside interview with public address announcer Scott Moak.
“Kings fans bring it every night and we feed off that,” Monk said.
Sunday’s game marked the start of a four-game homestand for the Kings. They will play the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday in a nationally televised game on TNT.
Stephen Curry scored 27 points for the Warriors (5-8), who fell to 0-7 on the road. Andrew Wiggins scored 26 points. Jordan Poole had 18 and Klay Thompson had 17.
Sacramento and Golden State met for the third time in a span of 22 days. The Warriors beat the Kings 130-125 on Oct. 23 and 116-113 on Nov. 7.
The Warriors came in to the contest with back-to-back wins after enduring a five-game losing streak.
“They’re a good team,” Brown said before the game. “I don’t care what their record is. They’re NBA champions.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr complimented the Kings as well, saying they have shown growth since their first matchup in October.
“Way better defensively,” Kerr said. “The first game we played them was, I think, our third game of the year. I think we scored 89 in the first half. Mike took about three timeouts when we just threw the ball over the top and got layups, and they took away most of that stuff in the last game, so I think they’re much more disciplined defensively. I think they have a better idea of what they have to do to win games, and they’re learning quickly, so they’re a tough team. They’re well put together. The roster makes a lot of sense and Mike is doing a fantastic job of coaching them.”
The Kings were thoroughly outplayed in the opening period. They allowed the Warriors to shoot 60.9% and trailed by as many as 15 while giving up a 39-point first quarter. The Kings started the second quarter with a 9-2 run and later staged an 8-0 run to take a 47-46 lead on a 3-pointer by Monk.
Sacramento was up 64-62 at the half. Golden State briefly reclaimed the lead on a couple of occasions in the third quarter, but the Kings carried a 98-91 lead into the fourth after Murray buried a 3-pointer with 4.6 seconds remaining.
The Kings went up 107-98 on a driving layup by Fox, but the Warriors came back to take a 111-109 lead on a 3-pointer by Thompson.
Golden State led by three with four minutes remaining, but Fox reprised his role from Friday’s win over the Los Angeles Lakers to put the Warriors away. He scored the next three baskets, including a 3-pointer, as part of a 9-0 run to secure the win for Sacramento.
Sabonis said it was good to get a win at home.
“I’ve been in the NBA for seven years and defending homecourt is big,” Sabonis said. “Those are games you’ve got to win, especially in a place like this with fans like this. Having the support of your fans means a lot.”
Kerr was asked what went wrong down the stretch.
“I thought they just outplayed us,” Kerr said. “Give them credit. Sabonis dominated the game. He scored inside. They love running their offense with him at the top and they’ve got all those shooters. Murray made a shot. Fox got hot. So, I just thought they outplayed us and earned the win.”
This story was originally published November 14, 2022 at 4:00 AM.
