Kings Score Nine in First, Rally to Beat Bulls

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Published on February 6 2018 6:06 am
Last Updated on February 6 2018 6:06 am

By ESPN

Two days after getting heated with his players didn't work, Sacramento coach Dave Joerger tried a softer, gentler approach and got the results he wanted.

If only it had been that easy for the Kings all season.

Bogdan Bogdanovic made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 52 seconds remaining and Sacramento overcame a dismal start with a strong finish to beat the Chicago Bulls 104-98 on Monday night.

The Kings scored just nine points in the first quarter, trailed by as many as 21 and were down by seven with 10 minutes left before rallying to complete Sacramento's first season sweep of the Bulls since 2006-07.

"I did a fair bit of screaming Saturday night trying to get us to play and I couldn't," Joerger said, referring to a 106-99 loss to Dallas. "If you start doing on that on a nightly basis and they'll not hear you. So I was trying to be very positive."

After Zach LaVine's follow shot tied it at 93 with less than 4 minutes left, Sacramento's Buddy Hield and Chicago's Bobby Portis exchanged 3-pointers. Bogdanovic then hit the go-ahead bucket for the Kings on an uncontested shot beyond the arc.

Willie Cauley-Stein added an emphatic dunk but was called for goaltending on a shot by LaVine that cut the Kings' lead to 101-98. George Hill added three free throws over the final 11.4 seconds.

Bogdanovic had 15 points, Hill scored 14 and Garrett Temple added 12 for Sacramento.

The Kings became the second team this season to win after scoring nine or fewer in the first quarter. Miami beat the Bulls on Nov. 26 after being held to seven in the opening period.

"We didn't drive into the paint as much in the second half, and we started making shots," Bogdanovic said.

LaVine scored 27 points and Justin Holiday had 20 for Chicago. The Bulls, who lost center Robin Lopez to an ejection in the first half, have dropped seven straight.

Chicago was already playing without Lauri Markkanen, who missed his third straight game due to the birth of his child, and Kris Dunn. Markkanen was scheduled to join the Bulls in Sacramento but his flight was cancelled due to weather in Chicago.

"Best start we had in a long time," Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. "But then they ramped up the pressure on us in the second half and really bothered us."

The Bulls led 28-9 after the first quarter while limiting the Kings to a season low for scoring in any period this season. The Kings were booed off the court after making only four shots.

Sacramento turned things around after that, scoring 32 in the second, 36 in the third and 27 in the fourth.


Wizards 111, Pacers 102

Suddenly, the Washington Wizards look unbeatable.

Their early season shooting woes are gone, they're sharing the ball more and they're playing like a contender. And they've done it all with All-Star guard John Wall on the mend.

They did it again Monday as Bradley Beal, their other All-Star, scored 21 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. added 15 to lead the Wizards past the Indiana Pacers, 111-102 for a season-best fifth straight win.

"John is such a key and valuable piece to our team. He draws so much attention at what he brings to both ends of the floor, that's kind of irreplaceable," Beal said. "It's definitely a huge hit to us having him out, but we've been having some success. We've figured it out a little bit."

Actually, they're thriving.

Since Wall went down with an injured left knee, Washington hasn't lost. The latest victory gave the Wizards their fourth in a row over the Pacers, something that hadn't happened since a nine-game winning streak in the series ended in 1983-84.

The difference appears to be more balance.

On Monday, eight players scored in double figures and three had at least seven rebounds. Thomas Satoransky and Tim Frazier each finished with six assists and Beal was the only Washington player with more than two turnovers.

The Wizards outscored Indiana 30-11 in transition and had a 43-35 rebounding edge, too.

"I thought everybody chipped in and played well," Washington coach Scott Brooks said.

But the Pacers weren't themselves.

With All-Star guard Victor Oladipo out with an illness and point guard Darren Collison out with a bad left knee, the Pacers were out of sync and out of contention for most of the game.

The Wizards took advantage.

Indiana missed its first six shots, which allowed Washington to jump out to a 17-8 lead. The Wizards took complete control with a 13-0 run that made it 55-39 with 3:13 to go in the first half.

The Pacers never got closer than seven again.

Bojan Bogdanovic scored a season-high 29 points for the Pacers as he tried to spur a fourth-quarter rally. Joe Young added 17 as Indiana's six-game home winning streak ended.

"Vic is our go-to-guy. We knew it was going to be tough without both," Bogdanovic said. "They play heavy minutes. We got two less players in the rotation. I think (Washington) didn't win this game. We lost this game with too many turnovers and (giving up) too many easy points."

 

Monday, February 5 Scoreboard

Detroit 111, Portland 91

Washington 111, Indiana 102

Orlando 111, Miami 109

Utah 133, New Orleans 109

Denver 121, Charlotte 104

Sacramento 104, Chicago 98

Los Angeles Clippers 104, Dallas 101


Tuesday, February 6 Schedule (All Times Central)

Cleveland at Orlando, 6 p.m.

Boston at Toronto, 6:30 p.m.

Memphis at Atlanta, 6:30 p.m.

Houston at Brooklyn, 6:30 p.m.

Milwaukee at New York, 6:30 p.m.

Washington at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.

Oklahoma City at Golden State, 9:30 p.m.

Phoenix at Los Angeles Lakers, 9:30 p.m.