Malik Monk hit three key fourth-quarter 3-pointers to stall a Memphis rally as part of a 31-point night, DeMar DeRozan chipped in with 29 points and the Sacramento Kings won for a third straight time under interim coach Doug Christie with a 138-133 triumph over the visiting Grizzlies on Friday night.
In just their fourth game since Mike Brown was fired, the Kings led by as many as 15 points early in the third quarter before the Grizzlies chipped away, eventually drawing even at 100-all on a pair of free throws by Jaren Jackson Jr. with 1:27 left in the period.
A tightly contested early fourth quarter saw the visitors go up 110-109 on two Scotty Pippen Jr. foul shots with 7:56 remaining in the game. That’s when Monk hit his first big shot, a 23-footer with 7:23 left that put the Kings back on top for good.
The margin was just two before Monk connected again from deep a little more than two minutes later, creating some breathing room for the hosts at 121-116 with 5:20 to go.
Monk’s third three capped a personal eight-point run that opened a 10-point advantage with 4:21 left.
Monk finished 6-for-12 on 3-pointers, helping the Kings gain a 63-51 advantage in points from beyond the arc. DeRozan had four 3-pointers, Trey Lyles made four in four attempts to account for a majority of his 16 points, and Domantas Sabonis hit three to pad his 17-point total.
Sabonis also found time for a game-high 10 rebounds, team-high-tying six assists and two blocks. De’Aaron Fox added 23 points, five assists and three steals, and Keon Ellis’ 13 points and three steals aided the cause.
Rookie Jaylen Wells poured in a season-best 30 points while Jackson (28) and Desmond Bane (22) also topped 20 points for the Grizzlies, who were playing the front end of a Northern California back-to-back. They will resurface Saturday night at Golden State.
Bane also had eight assists, seven rebounds and two steals, while Brandon Clarke snatched eight rebounds to go with 11 points.
Pippen totaled 16 points and Luke Kennard 11 to complement a team-high-tying eight rebounds and a team-high nine assists for the Grizzlies, who fell to 2-2 on a five-game trip.
–Field Level Media
