Shorthanded Sacramento Kings stun Cleveland Cavaliers despite absence of three key players
The Kings turned in one of their most inspired efforts of the season to knock off the top team in the Eastern Conference with three key players out due to injury and other ailments.
DeMar DeRozan scored 27 points to lead the Kings to a 123-119 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
Malik Monk had 22 points and eight assists for the Kings (35-33). Rookie Devin Carter came off the bench to post a career-high 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals.
“This is a baseline for who the Sacramento Kings are,” interim Kings coach Doug Christie said. “If that’s what we continue to solidify, ultimately we start to grow and be everything our fans and our organization want us to be.”
Carter provided a huge spark to fuel a game-changing 17-2 run for Sacramento in the third quarter.
“I think it was everybody,” Carter said. “The whole second unit, the whole first unit. I wouldn’t say it was just me. It was everybody.”
Evan Mobley had 31 points and 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers (56-13), who have lost three in a row for just the second time this season. Donovan Mitchell added 26 points with five rebounds and four assists.
Kings center Domantas Sabonis missed his second game due to a right ankle sprain. Zach LaVine (personal reasons) and Jake LaRavia (illness) were ruled out in the hours leading up to the game.
The Kings will be back in action when they face the Chicago Bulls on Thursday on the second night of a back-to-back. Interim Kings coach Doug Christie said he was hopeful LaVine and LaRavia would be available Thursday.
Halftime report
The Kings trailed 20-7 after going 2 of 19 from the field and 1 of 9 from 3-point range over the first 10 minutes.
The Cavaliers led 22-15 at the end of the first period. The Kings cut the deficit to one late in the second quarter, but they were down 56-47 at the halftime break.
Cleveland shot 65.4% in the opening half while holding Sacramento to 34%. Monk led all scorers with 14 points. Jerome had 12 to lead a balanced effort for the Cavaliers.
Second half
The Kings took an 85-74 lead with 3:06 to play in the third period after Devin Carter scored 10 points in a span of 2:11 to fuel a 17-2 run for Sacramento. The Cavaliers quickly turned the tide, responding with a 14-2 run to take an 88-87 lead.
The Kings led 90-88 at the end of the third quarter. The Cavaliers went up 107-102 midway through the fourth, but the Kings staged a 7-0 run to reclaim the lead on a breakaway dunk by Carter.
The Kings went up 119-116 on a basket by DeRozan with 1:08 to play. Monk followed with a fallaway jumper to put the Kings up 121-116 with 34.2 seconds to go. Mitchell answered with a 3-pointer for Cleveland, but Monk put the game away with two free throws on the ensuing possession.
Up next
Both teams will be on the second night of a back-to-back when the Kings play host to the Bulls on Thursday
The Bulls (29-39) have been playing well, winning five of six before Wednesday’s game against the Phoenix Suns.
The Kings are 4-9 when playing on the second night of a back-to-back. The Bulls are 2-8.
This story was originally published March 19, 2025 at 10:05 PM.
