Kings 98, Warriors 93: Sweep in Oakland

DUH. You’re welcome Will, even though it’s not one word. (Read the preview if you don’t understand)

Wow, what a finish we witnessed as the Sacramento Kings defeated the Golden State Warriors on the road!

The Kings have done this earlier in the season, where Bogdan Bogdanovic scored the game-sealing shot over Draymond Green.

This time, the game went to the wire again. For every time the Warriors made a shot that got those “fans” roaring, the Kings showed their resilience as they would answer with their own crowd-quieting shot.

Willie Cauley-Stein had a block on Nick Young’s three point attempt and would finish the sequence with a two-handed dunk to seal the game. He also drew a big charge a few possessions earlier.

Biggest Storylines

Let’s change it up a bit here. Here are the biggest storylines from today’s victory:

1. De’Aaron Fox was 0/5 for three-fourths of the game, not making much of an impact at all. But then, the fourth quarter came to the final minutes and guess what time it was? You guessed it, it was time for Fox to show the ice in his veins. He was 3/3 in the fourth with six points, all six being huge for Sacramento. Like Buddy Hield said postgame about Fox, it’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish. Another game with big baskets from Fox!
2. Buddy Hield was so crucial and amazing in this game. He played 30 minutes off the bench and led the way in scoring. He scored 22 points to go along with seven assists and seven rebounds. He was 7/13 overall, 5/10 from deep. Hield also scored three clutch free throws towards the end of the game.
3. Quinn Cook had himself one fantastic performance in place for Stephen Curry, who didn’t play today. In 40 minutes, Cook scored 25 points on 10/13 shooting, 5/7 overall. Today, he was the random that had a career high against Sacramento. Cook almost outscored four Kings starters. Willie Cauley-Stein, Justin Jackson, Zach Randolph and Fox combined for 28 points, so not bad for Cook.

Best Performers

Like mentioned, Buddy Hield went off for a big game today. Without his performance, there’s not much offense provided by anyone else.

Skal Labissiere was not very good shooting inside the perimeter, but had nine of his 15 points come from deep. He also had three assists and five rebounds.

For the Warriors, Quinn Cook led the way for 25. Young had 16, Green has 14-7-10 and Andre Iguodala scored 11.

Notable Stats

Shooting: Kings shot 43%, compared to the Warriors 42%. Kings made 14 threes to the Warriors 12. The Warriors converted 13/18 free throws to Sacramento’s 12/17.

Non-shooting: Sacramento out-rebounded the Warriors 47-40, out-assisted them 25-21 but were out-stolen 7-10 and out-blocked 4-5.

The Nasty Stats: Kings had more turnovers (13-11), but had less fouls (16-21).

Quick Takeaways

Yes, the Warriors were down the majority of their stars but their depth is still great. They should’ve won this one, but the Kings said nah.

Willie Cauley-Stein’s fourth quarter sequence to seal the deal was so great, even though he was quiet for the other parts of the game.

Regarding the Utah Jazz game tomorrow, Grant Napear said this in the postgame: “Let’s see what the Kings have in their tank.” You decide the meaning of that.

That Garrett Temple block in the fourth was so phenomenal.

Next Game

The Kings head to Utah to take on the Jazz at 6:00 PM PST.

The Game in Multiple Sentences

I hate the Warriors. Kings defeated them in their home arena. Warriors “fans” will make their excuses. It doesn’t matter, Kings win! Add what you want.