Sabonis scores 27, LaVine adds 22 and Kings rally from 20 down to beat Pelicans 123-118
Domantas Sabonis had 27 points and 16 rebounds for his NBA-leading 46th double-double of the season and the Sacramento Kings overcame a 20-point deficit for a 123-118 victory over New Orleans on Saturday night that extended the Pelicans' losing streak to eight games.
Zach LaVine added 22 points in his best game for the Kings since being acquired in a trade from the Chicago Bulls last week. Keegan Murray had 19 points with eight rebounds.
Zion Williamson scored a season-high 40 points for New Orleans, CJ McCollum had 31 points while Trey Murphy III scored 20.
The game began as if it might be a blowout but ended in a flourish.
New Orleans, which led 29-9 less than nine minutes into the first quarter, trailed most of the fourth quarter and got within 121-118 on a pair of free throws by McCollum with 15.2 seconds remaining.
Jonas Valanciunas, acquired by the Kings at the trade deadline, made two free throws to help secure the win.
Takeaways
Pelicans: The backcourt tandem of McCollum and Jose Alvarado combined for 36 points, 12 assists and four steals, making it difficult for the Kings to double-team Williamson.
Kings: It was another shaky night as coach Doug Christie tries to integrate the newcomers into his system. On the plus side, LaVine was more aggressive and on the attack than he was in his first two games with Sacramento.
Key moments
Jake LaRavia came off the bench in the first quarter and immediately sparked a 15-2 run to close out the quarter, putting the Kings right back in the game.
After Sabonis picked up his fourth foul with 4 1/2 minutes left in the third, the Kings closed the quarter on a 22-9 run.
Key stat
The Pelicans made 14 3-pointers, matching their most over the past nine games.
Up next
Pelicans: End their four-game road trip on Monday night against Oklahoma City.
Kings: Face the Mavericks in Dallas on Monday night.