The Sacramento Kings on Monday defeated the Golden State Warriors 114-106 to take a 2-0 lead over the NBA champions after a bruising game 2 in their best-of-seven Western Conference playoff series.
After edging a thrilling game 1 on Saturday, the Kings once again proved too much for the Warriors in another pulsating post-season battle between the two Northern Californian rivals in Sacramento.
De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis led the Sacramento scoring with 24 points apiece in a stormy encounter that saw Warriors stalwart Draymond Green ejected after stamping on the chest of Sabonis in the fourth quarter.
Photo: EPA-EFE
The victory leaves the Kings on pole position as the series heads to San Francisco for game 3 tomorrow.
“We came out here tonight and everyone fought, we were locked in,” Sabonis told TNT television. “It’s playoff basketball. We’re here to fight. Every time we step on the floor we’re going to give everything for our teammates and our franchise.”
Sabonis was reluctant to be drawn on the explosive fourth-quarter tangle with Green that led to the Warriors veteran being tossed.
Green was ejected after appearing to aim a stamp on Sabonis’s chest as the Kings player held on to his ankle while he lay on the court.
“We were both fighting for the rebound, we fell on each other, stuff happens, it’s basketball. We’ve got to move on to the next play,” Sabonis said.
Green pinned the blame on Sabonis.
“I’ve got to land my foot somewhere,” Green said. “I can only step so far when I’m pulling my leg away. It is what it is.”
Steph Curry led the Warriors scoring with 28 points, while Andrew Wiggins finished with 22 and Klay Thompson 21.
However the Warriors were left ruing a litany of 20 turnovers that gave up cheap points to Sacramento, who led from early in the second quarter.
Golden State clawed their way back from a 14-point third-quarter deficit to tie it at 93-93 midway through the fourth, but Sacramento responded to pull clear down the stretch and close out a gutsy win.
In Monday’s other playoff game, Tyrese Maxey scored 33 points as the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Brooklyn Nets 96-84 to take a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference series.
Maxey’s haul from 13-of-23 shooting included six from three-point range as Brooklyn finally succumbed after making a bright start that saw them lead by 10 points in the second quarter.
Brooklyn were left ruing their inability to make the most of their first-half dominance against a sluggish-looking Sixers, who nevertheless restricted the Nets to just a five-point advantage as the teams went in for half-time at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center.
Philadelphia’s adjustments paid dividends in the third and fourth quarters, with the Sixers outscoring Brooklyn 24-14 in the third before wrapping up victory in the fourth.
Game 3 in the series takes place in Brooklyn tomorrow.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Team Taiwan avoided missing the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time by defeating Spain 6-3 in a do-or-die game in Taipei last night. After narrowly escaping a mercy-rule loss to Spain in the WBC Qualifiers opener on Friday last week, the home team — winner of last year's WBSC Premier12 title three months ago — got their revenge against the 2023 European champions at Taipei Dome. "It felt quite different from when we won the Premier12," Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game, recalling the ups and downs the team has experienced over the past few days. Unlike in
RSS