Loss to Clippers prevents Kings from clinching home play-in game
James Harden posted the 80th triple-double of his career to help the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Kings 101-100 in a thrilling finish Friday night at Golden 1 Center In Sacramento.
Keegan Murray came up with a steal to give the Kings a chance to win after trailing by 10 in the fourth quarter, but DeMar DeRozan missed a 3-pointer as time expired.
Kawhi Leonard scored 28 points to lead the Clippers (49-32), who are trying to secure the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference playoff race.
Harden had 23 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. Ivica Zubac put up 17 points and 10 rebounds. Norman Powell added 16 points.
Zach LaVine scored 26 points for the Kings (39-42), who could have clinched homecourt advantage in the first round of the play-in tournament with a win.
Domantas Sabonis had 19 points, 16 rebounds and five assists. DeMar DeRozan had 16 points and eight assists.
Both teams got some good news on the injury front before the game. Murray, who had nine points and eight rebounds, was cleared to return after missing the past three games due to lower back inflammation. Powell (shoulder) and Zubac (ankle) were cleared to play after being listed as questionable for the Clippers.
The Kings will be back in action Sunday when they close out the regular season against the Phoenix Suns.
“I wish I could have got a better shot,” DeRozan said. “Things were just a little clogged. They kind of switched everything. I just wish we had got a cleaner look at it instead of going back into the big, so that was on me. I should have made a better read.”
Halftime report
The Kings led 29-24 after playing a stellar first quarter. They shot 57.1% from the field while holding the Clippers to 42.9% and tallied 10 assists on 12 made baskets.
The Kings went up by as many as nine when Lyles made a 3-pointer to give them a 40-31 lead with 7:42 to play in the second period. The Clippers came back to cut the deficit to two on a pair of free throws by Powell and led 50-49 after Leonard sank a 3-pointer with 1.0 second remaining in the first half.
Leonard led all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting in the opening half. Sabonis had 10 points and 11 rebounds for Sacramento.
Second half
The Clippers opened the second half with a 6-0 run to take a 56-49 lead. The Kings trailed 75-70 at the end of the third period.
Sacramento got within three at the start of the fourth quarter and cut the deficit to two on a three-point play by Sabonis. Los Angeles responded with a 7-0 run to take an 89-80 lead on a dunk by Derrick Jones Jr.
The Clippers went up by 10 on two free throws by Leonard. LaVine made back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the deficit to three with 1:24 remaining. The Kings got within two on a baseline jumper by DeRozan with 51.6 seconds to go.
Harden put the Clippers up 101-99 when he made the first of two free throws with 10.1 seconds remaining. The Kings trailed by one after LaVine made two free throws with 2.3 seconds to go.
Murray came up with a steal on the ensuing inbound play and immediately called timeout. The ball went to DeRozan, who forced up an off-balance 3-pointer while being crowded by Zubac and Kris Dunn. The shot missed as time expired, allowing the Clippers to escape with the win.
Up next
The Kings will play host to the Suns in the regular-season finale Sunday at Golden 1 Center.
The Suns (35-45) have been eliminated from postseason contention. They had lost eight in a row going into Friday’s game against the San Antonio Spurs.
This story was originally published April 11, 2025 at 10:21 PM.
