- The Sacramento Kings beat the Golden State Warriors 118-99 in San Francisco to force a play-off series decider on Sunday
- The game will be played at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. This will be the second time in the Sacramento era that the Kings will be hosting Game 7
The Sacramento Kings beat the Golden State Warriors 118-99 in San Francisco to force a play-off series decider on Sunday.
Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox combined for 54 points to help sink Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors. The Kings, who withstood every scoring surge by the defending champions, will have home advantage as they play winner-takes-all Game 7 on Sunday afternoon.
The Sacramento Kings will have home advantage in Sunday’s final game. Photo/ The Sacramento Bee.
The game will be played at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. This will be the second time in the Sacramento era that the Kings will be hosting Game 7. They will be earning a shot at their first playoff-series win for the first time in 19 years.
Steph Curry scored 29 points, with his teammate Klay Thompson managing 22 in the match. Kevon Looney pulled down 13 more rebounds to become an NBA-leading 85 this postseason.
Speaking after the loss, Stephen Curry said that the Golden State Warriors had a lot of mental errors which allowed the Kings to grab momentum early.
“We just had a lot of kind of mental errors, and they took advantage of it and grabbed momentum early. I don’t know if that was an energy thing or a focus thing, or whatever it was, but you have to be able to learn those lessons quickly.” ESPN quotes Steph Curry.
How The Game Unfolded
Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr had warned his team to be ready for a different level from the Kings.
“Be ready for a different level from the Kings. They would be looser. They would be playing with more aggression. They would be playing with far more emotions.” Kerr warned his players, as per ESPN.
But even after the warning, the Golden State Warriors were somehow caught offguard in the match. They set the tone for their lackluster game early.
The Warriors were disjointed and seemed overwhelmed by the Kings. Steve Kerr’s side had committed nine turnovers in the first half alone. This led to 15 Sacramento points.
The Kings led by as many as 11 points in the second quarter and were not looking back. Rookie Keegan Murray scored 15 points with four 3-pointers and grabbed 12 rebounds for his first playoff double-double.
With 12 minutes left to play, The Kings were leading 90-80. Curry hit an early 3 but Trey Lyles connected moments later.
The Sacramento Kings beat the Golden State Warriors 118-99. Photo/ San Francisco Chronicle.
Fox’s first points came on jumper with less than 140 seconds to go. He scored again while dealing with a broken index finger on his shooting hand. The 25-year-old shot 10 for 18.
The Warriors and most NBA fans thought Golden State’s power would let them win; however, the Kings proved that their regular-season track record was far from fool’s gold. If Steph Curry and the Warriors want to progress to the Western Conference semifinals, they’ll must win another game on the road.
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