Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan lead Kings to long-awaited win over New Orleans Pelicans
The Kings did something Thursday they couldn’t do last season.
They beat the New Orleans Pelicans, but not by much.
Domantas Sabonis put up an impressive double-double with 32 points and 21 rebounds, leading the Kings to a 111-109 victory over the Pelicans at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans.
The Kings exorcised their demons after going 0-6 against the Pelicans last season, including five regular-season losses and a 105-98 loss in a play-in elimination game that prevented Sacramento from going to the playoffs.
The Pelicans stormed back from a 14-point deficit in the final minutes, but the Kings got two big defensive stops in the final minute.
“Our guys just found a way to win,” Kings coach Mike Brown said.
DeMar DeRozan scored 29 points for the Kings (13-13), who have won three in a row and four of their last five to get back to .500 for the first time since Nov. 22. Sacramento is now tied for 11th in the Western Conference, a half game behind the Phoenix Suns for 10th and 1 ½ games behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the No. 6 seed.
“We’re trending in the right direction,” DeRozan said on the NBC Sports California postgame show. “... We stayed poised. That’s what it’s all about. A win is a win, no matter if it’s pretty or ugly. You’ve got to find a way to get that win.”
DeRozan scored 20 points in the second half, making 7 of 12 from the field and 3 of 3 from 3-point range after going 0 of 6 in the first half.
“I just wanted to come out and be aggressive,” DeRozan said. “We were kind of slacking offensively and defensively. We weren’t shooting the ball well. I just wanted to bring a spark.”
De’Aaron Fox didn’t shoot well, going 7 of 20 from the field and 1 of 6 from 3-point range, but he finished with 18 points, seven rebounds and eight assists. Keegan Murray had 18 points and nine rebounds while Malik Monk was held to five points on 2-of-11 shooting.
CJ McCollum scored 36 points to lead the Pelicans (5-21), who have lost 12 of their last 13 games. Trey Murphy III scored 21 points. Dejounte Murray had 20 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, but he committed eight of his team’s 16 turnovers.
New Orleans was missing a number of players due to injuries, including Zion Williamson (left hamstring strain), Brandon Ingram (left ankle sprain) and Jose Alvarado (left hamstring strain).
The Kings grabbed 18 offensive rebounds, resulting in a 21-10 advantage in second-chance points. They also went 27 of 29 at the free-throw line. That helped them earn the win despite shooting 39.8% from the field and 29.4% from 3-point range.
“Keegan (had) six offensive rebounds, Domantas seven offensive rebounds, Fox three offensive rebounds,” Brown said. “We obviously needed every single one of those rebounds. Nineteen offensive rebounds total, and the way we were shooting that basketball, and (21) second-chance points was just huge for us.”
It took almost three minutes for the Kings to get on the scoreboard after they missed their first four shots, but then they started cooking, at least for a while. Sabonis and Fox went inside for easy baskets. Monk hit a 3-pointer. Before long, the Kings had opened up a nine-point lead after staging a 16-2 run.
Sabonis had the hot hand early, scoring 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting with eight rebounds in the first nine minutes. Sabonis was only outdone by Murphy, who scored 16 points in the opening period to help the Pelicans get within two at the end of the first quarter.
The Kings found themselves trailing by four early in the second quarter after going 2 of 10 from 3-point range to start the game. The Pelicans went up 50-45 on a 3-pointer by Murray with 2:57 to play in the half. They led 55-53 at the break.
New Orleans shot just 40.9% in the opening half, but Sacramento was held to 36.2% shooting while going 4 of 17 (.235) from 3-point range. The Pelicans went 8 of 22 from long distance, outscoring the Kings 24-12 from the 3-point line.
DeRozan missed all six of his shots in the first half, but he got hot in the second. The six-time All-Star scored 14 points in the first 3:42 of the third quarter, going 3 of 3 from 3-point range and converting a three-point play.
DeRozan fueled a 19-7 run that put the Kings up 74-69. They went up by 10 later in the third quarter and led 91-83 going into the fourth.
Sacramento went up 102-88 on a basket by Sabonis with 6:48 to play. The Pelicans came back to cut the deficit to two on a three-point play by McCollum with 1:24 to go.
McCollum scored 17 points in the fourth quarter, going 6 of 9 from the field and 4 of 5 from 3-point range.
“CJ was fantastic in the fourth,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. “He made big play after big play, big shot after big shot.”
The Pelicans had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds, but Monk poked the ball away from Murray with 3.2 seconds remaining to secure the victory.
This story was originally published December 12, 2024 at 8:01 PM.
