Pelicans top Kings to end 10-game losing streak despite big games from Sacramento stars
CJ McCollum scored 43 points to help the New Orleans Pelicans snap a 10-game losing streak with a 140-133 overtime victory against the Sacramento Kings on Thursday at Smoothie King Center.
McCollum was held to six points in the first half, but he scored 26 in the second half and 11 in overtime to lead the Pelicans (13-42) to their first win since Jan. 20. New Orleans won despite the absence of Zion Williamson, who was held out on the second night of a back-to-back due to return to competition reconditioning.
“This is a bad one,” Kings guard Malik Monk said. “These are games we’ve got to win. When we look back in April and we’re looking at games we should have won, this is definitely one of them.”
Zach LaVine had his best game since coming to the Kings in the three-team trade that sent De’Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs and Kevin Huerter to the Chicago Bulls. LaVine had 32 points and 10 assists, going 12 of 24 from the field and 5 of 12 from 3-point range.
Domantas Sabonis recorded his league-leading 49th double-double of the season for the Kings (28-27), who had won three in a row. Sabonis scored 22 points and tied his career high with 28 rebounds, matching the Sacramento-era franchise record he set earlier this season.
“He’s a monster, man,” interim Kings coach Doug Christie said. “Anybody that criticizes that kid has issues with themselves. He fights. He’s not a perfect player, but one thing I can say is I always know what I’m going to get from him. I’m going to get extreme effort and intensity. Sometimes the ball goes in and sometimes it doesn’t, but he’s going to fight his butt off.”
The Kings will have a week off for the All-Star break before they return to action against the Golden State Warriors on Feb. 21 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
More stats
Monk had 24 points, six rebounds and nine assists for Sacramento, but he went 8 of 24 from the field and 4 of 12 from 3-point range while committing four turnovers.
DeMar DeRozan had 20 points on 5-of-16 shooting. Keegan Murray had 13 points and eight rebounds.
McCollum was one of six players who scored in double figures for New Orleans. Trey Murphy III had 18 points and 11 rebounds. Jose Alvarado had 18 points and eight assists. Jordan Hawkins and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl scored 16 points apiece.
Halftime report
The Kings trailed 29-28 at the end of the first quarter. They shot just 42.3% while committing six turnovers.
The Pelicans led by seven midway through the second quarter before the Kings staged a 15-0 run to take a 56-48 lead on a 3-pointer by LaVine. Sacramento led 65-60 at the halftime break.
LaVine led all scorers in the first half with 16 points. He went 7 of 11 from the field and 2 of 4 from 3-point range.
Alvarado led the Pelicans with 14 points after going 5 of 7 from the field and 4 of 5 from beyond the arc.
Second half
The Kings maintained a slight lead until McCollum hit a 3-pointer to put the Pelicans up 78-77 with 5:30 to play in the third period. McCollum had a huge third quarter for New Orleans, scoring 21 points while going 7 of 8 from the field and 4 of 5 from 3-point range.
Sacramento trailed 98-95 going into the fourth quarter. The Pelicans went up 111-102 with 7:28 to go. The Kings came back to tie the game on a three-point play by LaVine and reclaimed the lead on a putback dunk by Sabonis with 3:06 remaining.
McCollum hit a baseline jumper to put New Orleans up 123-122 with 34.1 seconds to play. The Kings were down 127-124 when Sabonis went to the free throw line with 7.2 seconds remaining.
Sabonis missed the second free throw, but Monk grabbed the rebound and got fouled. Monk made both free throws to tie the game and McCollum missed a floater as time expired, sending the game to overtime.
Sabonis hauled in 13 rebounds in the fourth quarter, becoming the first player to grab 13 rebounds in a quarter since Hassan Whiteside in 2018.
Overtime
The Pelicans led 138-133 with 1:22 to play in overtime following a 3-pointer by McCollum and a basket by Karlo Matkovic. The Kings still had a chance, but their last three possessions resulted in a missed 3-pointer by DeRozan and two turnovers by LaVine and Monk.
This story was originally published February 13, 2025 at 8:56 PM.
