Bogdan Bogdanovic recorded a career-high 25 points in tonight’s game against the Utah Jazz. But it was not enough for the Sacramento Kings to earn the win.
The Sacramento Kings have fallen to a season record of 13-31 due to tonight’s loss to the Utah Jazz by a score of 120-105.
Tonight was the first game where Dave Joerger, Kings’ head coach, exercised his new approach of playing mostly his young guys for most of the game. Scroll down below to see how the team fared throughout the evening.
Game Summary
The beginning of the contest was in favor of the Kings. The team collectively were making their shots while they took advantage of the Jazz who struggled to score early. However, despite Sacramento taking an early lead, six first-quarter turnovers stymied the early momentum they had which had them trailing 23-21 after the first.
The second quarter did not go any better for the Kings. Turnovers continued to be an issue and their shooting gradually declined as the period went on. Meanwhile, the Jazz found their rhythm offensively as they put up 29 points for the quarter, giving them the 52-42 lead at halftime.
The second half continued to go the Jazz’s way. With great ball movement within the team, Utah was able to get great looks consistently in the third quarter which allowed them to score 36 points for the period. Donovan Mitchell specifically was great as his electric athleticism was able to get him 11 points in the quarter.
Despite the defense struggling in the third, Sacramento’s offense was efficient. Behind players like George Hill and Bogdan Bogdanovic, the Kings were able to put up 31 points for the quarter. Unfortunately, they still trailed 88-73 going into the fourth.
Bogdanovic tried to spark a rally in the final quarter, but Mitchell for the Jazz remained hot on the court which led to a 32-32 tie in the period where the Jazz came out on top 120-105 in the end.
Final Thoughts
Overall, not a good night for the Sacramento Kings. Although they showed some encouraging flashes on offense, their defense remains to be a liability.
Tonight, specifically, the defense for Sacramento was missing their defensive rotations and lacked energy in closing out shot attempts which resulted in Utah shooting 57% from the floor and 41% from beyond the perimeter.
Listed down below are some more highs and lows from tonight’s contest.
Takeaways From The Game
- Bogdan Bogdanovic had himself a great performance. Due to shooting 9-11 from the court and 6-6 from the three-point line, he scored 25 points tonight which is a personal best for him since coming to the NBA. He also recorded six rebounds and two assists in the game as well.
- Willie Cauley-Stein finished the night with 26 points and 10 rebounds. He continues to find his niche in the offense and is having Kings fans more excited for what the future holds for him going forth.
- George Hill also had a solid shooting night as he made six of his ten shots from the floor and four of his five three-point attempts. He finished with 20 points for the contest.
- The Kings shot the ball well tonight (53% from the floor, 62% from three), but their 19 turnovers limited their offensive success.
- Donovan Mitchell continues to prove he is the real deal. The Kings had little success in stopping the rookie as he recorded 34 points for the night and was the anchor for the Jazz in their win.
Next time the Kings play will be Friday night when they travel to Memphis to play against Tyreke Evans and the Grizzlies.