A Royal Pain
Fansided

Sacramento Kings Get Burned In Second Half, Lose To T-Wolves

By Rafe Wong

Sacramento Kings guard Frank Mason III (10) makes a basket as he's fouled by the Minnesota Timberwolves center Gorgui Dieng (5) in the first quarter at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif. on Monday, Feb. 26, 2018. (Hector Amezcua/Sacramento Bee/TNS via Getty Images)
Sacramento Kings guard Frank Mason III (10) makes a basket as he's fouled by the Minnesota Timberwolves center Gorgui Dieng (5) in the first quarter at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif. on Monday, Feb. 26, 2018. (Hector Amezcua/Sacramento Bee/TNS via Getty Images) /
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The result of a sloppy second half caused the Sacramento Kings to fall to the Minnesota Timberwolves by a score of 118-100.

Game Summary

The Sacramento Kings were able to start strong as they went on a 12-7 run to start the game. But the physicality of the Minnesota Timberwolves was too much for Sacramento to handle as players like Taj Gibson and Karl-Anthony Towns controlled the paint. The Wolves were able to go on a scoring run and take the lead late in the first, but the bench for the Kings limited the damage as they tied the game at 29 to end the first.

In the second quarter, both teams remained to be physical and played good basketball. Especially for the Kings, guys like Buddy Hield and Frank Mason played well as Hield caught fire shooting the ball while Mason ran the offense to perfection. Even though Minnesota still kept the lead behind their star power, Sacramento continued to be on their backs as they trailed 63-60 going into halftime.

The third quarter could not have gone worse for the Kings. The Wolves continued to have success on offense but now were also dominating the Kings defensively as Sacramento only made 28% of their shots for the period. As a result, Minnesota was able to pull away with a commanding 97-77 lead after three.

Once the fourth quarter came along, Minnesota pretty much kept their lead intact. A 23-21 quarter in Sacramento’s favor finally concluded the game as the Wolves left the building with a 118-100 victory.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the Kings were playing good basketball in the first half but were unable to keep up with the Wolves for the whole game, resulting in a beatdown in the final 24 minutes.

Despite the Kings taking the “L” for tonight, there were some positive notes to take away from the contest. Skal Labissiere was given a good amount of playing time and performed well as he recorded 20 points and four rebounds. De’Aaron Fox’s perimeter shooting looked better as he made three of his four attempts from the area. And Buddy Hield had a hot first half showcasing his value as a spark coming off the bench.

Right now it is looking ugly for the Kings in the beginning stages of their rebuild, but soon enough, their youth will help the franchise get back to being competitive on a consistent basis. Hopefully…

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