Kings top Warriors in California Classic with Acuff, Clifford and Cardwell out
The Sacramento Kings chose to rest rookie point guard Darius Acuff Jr., second-year guard Nique Clifford and second-year center Dylan Cardwell on Day 2 of the California Classic.
That decision came as a disappointment for fans, but it gave other players time to shine.
Emanuel Sharp, Isaiah Stevens and Marquel Sutton led the way as the Kings rallied to beat the Golden State Warriors Blue 91-85 on Sunday at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
The Kings trailed by nine with less than seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, but they outscored the Warriors 21-6 over the final 6:23. Sacramento improved to 2-0 in the California Classic after storming back from an 18-point deficit to beat the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday.
“It felt similar to yesterday’s game in some ways where there’s this ebb and flow,” Kings summer league coach Chris Darnell said. “We would tie the game up and they’d go back up seven or eight, so it was good that we had been in that position yesterday so we were calm and confident, but it was our defense for sure.
“The first half, we didn’t look like the Kings defense that we want to portray. I thought in the second half we really embraced that, and that was what got us going.”
Sharp, a rookie second-round draft pick from Houston, continued to impress at both ends of the floor with big shots and big stops on defense. Sharp finished with 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and one blocked shot.
Sharp finished with a plus-11 rating despite going 5 of 15 from the field and 4 of 12 from 3-point range.
“You can’t control whether your shots are going in, but I can always control my defense, how hard I’m playing, my energy, my enthusiasm, being a good teammate,” Sharp said. “I just try to go out there and do those things, the things I can control.”
Stevens had 18 points and four assists. Sutton came off the bench to post 16 points and seven rebounds. Viktor Lakhin played a key role as well with 12 points, six rebounds, four blocked shots and two steals.
The Kings got contributions from several players with Acuff, Clifford and Cardwell out of the lineup. In Saturday’s 79-76 victory over the Nets, Acuff scored 25 points and Clifford hit a game-winning 3-pointer with five seconds remaining.
Darnell didn’t have an answer when asked if Acuff, Clifford and Cardwell will play against the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday in the final game of the California Classic. He said that decision will be made by “the powers that be,” namely general manager Scott Perry, assistant general manager BJ Armstrong and coach Doug Christie.
Jackson Moni scored 18 points for the Warriors (0-2), who have two teams in the dual-site California Classic, one in Sacramento and one at Chase Center in San Francisco. Ruben Nembhard Jr. had 17 points.
The Kings trailed 52-42 at the halftime break. They came back to cut the deficit to one on a 3-pointer by Sharp at the end of the third quarter.
Reese Dixon-Waters and David Green made back-to-back 3-pointers to put Golden State up by nine with 6:38 to play in the fourth. Sacramento responded with an 11-0 run to take an 81-79 lead on a three-point play by Sutton with 3:25 remaining. The Kings never trailed again.
The Kings held the Warriors to 33 points in the second half after giving up 52 in the first half. Stevens was asked what was said at the halftime break.
“It was quick, it was stern, and (Darnell) was right at us that we weren’t playing Kings basketball,” Stevens said. “We weren’t playing up to our identity that we had set at the beginning of summer league training camp, so he was very clear and I feel like we responded well.”
Nets beat Bucks
Hunter Sallis and Ben Humrichous led the Nets to an 89-69 victory over the Bucks in the early game at Golden 1 Center.
Humrichous had 15 points and eight rebounds to help the Nets (1-1) bounce back from Saturday’s loss to the Kings. Sallis had 15 points, six rebounds and six assists.
Brandon Boston Jr. scored 18 points for the Bucks (1-1). Kobe Stewart and Kira Lewis Jr. scored 13 points apiece.
