No one said it was going to be easy. The Rockets have been playing great basketball all season, and the Sacramento Kings were going to have a tough fight. But a nearly 30 point blowout remains unacceptable, particularly when it was the starters who came up short in a big way.
If we're being completely honest, the first half of the game wasn't that bad. By the end of the second quarter, the score was 52 to 51 in favor of the Kings. Being this is the NBA, a one point lead is utterly meaningless if the game isn't over. At least the Kings were competitive for the first 24 minutes.
Then the second half started, and Houston went to work. In the third and fourth quarters, the Rockets outscored the Kings by 27 points, leading to a final score of 121 to 95. The worst of it came in the third quarter when the Rockets beat Sacramento 36 to 19. It was tough to watch.
Kevin Durant, Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson led the charge, combining for 72 points. Jabari Smith Jr. and Steven Adams were also in double digits. In total, the Rockets starting lineup totaled 89 points. That's where the biggest difference between Houston and Sacramento can be found.
The Kings starters are having problems
For Sacramento, the starters had a grand total of 33 points, which is a shocking differential. Thankfully for the Kings, their bench did most of the heavy lifting and came through with 62 points. Maxime Raynaud and Malik Monk had 25 each, a stellar night's work for both of them.
DeMar DeRozan and Russell Westbrook were the only starters in double digits with 12 each. Westbrook also had nine assists and four rebounds while Keegan Murray was cleaning the glass with 11 rebounds, one steal, and two blocks. Shockingly, Zach LaVine also had one steal and two blocks.
The problem was shooting. LaVine went one for five from the field, and missed all three-point shots he took. In the end, he finished with two points. Drew Eubanks, who played less than ten minutes, also only scored two points. Murray did a bit better than them with five.
Everyone knows that the Kings' starting lineup is broken. Even if Domantas Sabonis returns, it's not going to get significantly better. Arguably, Sacramento needs Dennis Schroder back on the bench more than they need Sabonis back in the starting lineup.