Spurs Hang Tough, Come Up Short in Loss to Kings
The San Antonio Spurs came out of the All-Star break swinging, but their best efforts came up short on Thursday night against the Sacramento Kings at the Golden 1 Center.
Domantas Sabonis had a triple-double and De'Aaron Fox made clutch plays down the stretch before finishing with a team-high 28 points as the Kings held off the Spurs in a 127-122 win.
Spurs guard Devin Vassell posted a game-high 32 points and six assists on 13 of 18 shooting but it wasn't enough to pull out the win in a game that had some exciting back-and-forth moments late.
Spurs rookie star Victor Wembanyama struggled from the field but still tallied 19 points, 13 rebounds, five blocks and five steals while finishing 8 of 21 shooting. Keldon Johnson (18 points) and Jeremy Sochan (16 points) turned in important contributions as well.
© Ed Szczepanski, USA TODAY
Sabonis' triple-double featured 22 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. Fox added five rebounds and nine assists of his own. The Kings had four players reach the 20-point mark, as guards Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter (each with 21 points) joined Fox and Sabonis in that regard.
Vassell got hot toward the end of the first quarter, scoring eight straight points for the Spurs amid a perfect start from the field on five shots. The Spurs led 32-30 after the first 12 minutes.
There was not a foul called in the first quarter on either team, marking the first time this has happened since the Houston Rockets and Phoenix Suns played on Feb. 9, 2012.
Despite a solid opening period, Fox and the Kings ended the second quarter strong and took a 65-57 lead headed into halftime.
The Kings stayed steady and held the lead for the entire third quarter, but Johnson started to take control in the fourth quarter, helping the Spurs rally back. Both teams kept trading blows in the final frame before the Johnson nailed an open triple to tie the game at 114-114 after San Antonio had been down by as many as 11.
Wembanyama then converted a wild and-one to give the Spurs a 117-116 a few possessions later. But from here, the Kings took the game back.
Fox hit a go-ahead triple from the top of the key, stripped Vassell on a layup attempt and then nailed another jumped to close out the Spurs in an impressive sequence.
The Spurs will visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.
