The formidable partnership of J-Dub, Jalan Williams, and SGA, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, overwhelmed the Kings, combining for a staggering 70 points on over 60% shooting. This led the Thunder to secure a 127-113 victory. The game commenced as a closely contested affair in the first quarter, but the Thunder asserted their dominance in the second period, establishing a double-digit lead. Despite the Kings’ efforts, they always fell short of closing the gap. Supporting players from the Thunder, such as Lu Dort and Kenrich Williams, delivered crucial three-pointers, thwarting any comeback attempts from the Kings.
In their previous matchup, the Kings managed to counteract an impressive performance from SGA with Fox’s own standout play. On December 14th, Fox contributed 41 points and 7 assists, while SGA scored 43 points and made 9 assists, effectively neutralizing each other’s impact. Sabonis continued his impressive streak against fellow Gonzaga alumnus Chet Holmgren, averaging 18.7 points, 13 rebounds, and 11.3 assists across the three games against the Thunder.
Two key themes stood in this game, the play of the top two stars for each team and points off turnovers, more on that one later. Fox wasn’t entirely absent from this game, contributing 15 points and assists on 6-17 shooting, although most of his production came late in the 4th quarter. Despite being at a disadvantage, the Kings didn’t back down, starting the fourth quarter with a 14-5 run and reducing the deficit to single digits. A significant contribution came from the perimeter bench trio of Davion Mitchell, Malik Monk, and Keon Ellis. Mitchell, in particular, was on fire, scoring 14 points on 5-6 shooting, including 4-4 from beyond the arc. Keon Ellis played 17 minutes, scoring 5 points and showing hustle on defense, ending the night with a neutral plus-minus rating. Malik continued to be money with 18 points and 9 dimes.
Turnovers were a critical factor in this game, with the Kings giving up 18, leading to 30 points for the Thunder. In contrast, the Thunder only turned over 11 times, resulting in 14 points for the Kings. Seemingly every time the Kings gave it up it led to an effortless layup or dunk on the other end of the court.
Also on the downside, Kevin Huerter managed only 2-7 from the field in 20 minutes, and Trey Lyles, who had been on a hot streak, ended with just 1 point and 5 rebounds in 24 minutes of play.
Looking ahead, the Kings face a crucial game against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday, February 13th. This match is significant for their bid for the 5th seed in the standings and could influence the playoff and play-in seedings come April.
