Light the Beam! Kings outfox Warriors to take Game 1, first playoff victory in 17 years

Jason Anderson
Updated ·3 min read
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De’Aaron Fox scored 38 points in his first career playoff game to lead the Kings to a dramatic 126-123 victory over the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of their best-of-seven series Saturday at Golden 1 Center.

A sellout crowd of 18,253 gasped with anticipation and roared with excitement as the third-seeded Kings opened the series with a win over the sixth-seeded Warriors in their first playoff game since 2006. When it was over, Fox was called on one more time to light the beam, signaling victory for Sacramento.

Malik Monk came off the bench to score 32 points for Sacramento, which will host Game 2 on Monday. Trey Lyles was also a big contributor off the bench with 16 points and six rebounds. Domantas Sabonis had 12 points and 16 rebounds.

Stephen Curry scored 30 points to lead the defending NBA champion Warriors, who are seeking their fifth title in nine years. Klay Thompson had 21 points. Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole scored 17 points apiece.Third quarter: Kings 91, Warriors 90

The Kings outscored the Warriors 15-4 over the last 2:29 of the third quarter to carry a one-point lead into the fourth.

The Warriors extended their lead to 10 early in the second half. The Kings came back to cut the deficit to four on a basket by De’Aaron Fox, who scored 11 points in a span of 2:40.

The Kings were trailing by seven when Malik Monk came on to replace Fox with 4:25 to play in the third quarter. Monk immediately drew a foul and got to the line for two free throws, but the Kings found themselves down by 10 again when Curry made a 3-pointer off an offensive rebound following two missed free throws by Kevon Looney.

That’s when Trey Lyles stepped up to provide a huge spark for Sacramento, hitting two 3-pointers while scoring 10 points in a span of 1:56 to get the Kings within one. Monk then made a driving layup with 3.1 seconds remaining to put the Kings up 91-90, sending a record-setting sellout crowd of 18,253 into a frenzy.Halftime: Warriors 61, Kings 55

The Kings trailed at the halftime break despite a big first half from Malik Monk.

Monk came off the bench to lead all scorers with 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting in 12 minutes. Monk made a 3-pointer and a driving layup to put Sacrament up 40-37 midway through the second quarter before the Warriors staged an 8-0 run to go ahead 45-40.

Alex Len, the big 7-footer who joined Sacramento’s rotation late in the season as the primary backup to All-Star center Domantas Sabonis, had a significant impact in the first half.

Len had four points and four rebounds in his first four minutes of action. His highlights included a big blocked shot against Draymond Green and an emphatic dunk that tied the game early in the second quarter.

Sabonis had 10 points and nine rebounds in the first half for the Kings, who shot just 39.2% from the field and made 4 of 16 (.250) from 3-point range. Monk and Sabonis were the only players who scored in double figures for Sacramento.

Jordan Poole led Golden State with 13 points. Andrew Wiggins, playing his first game since Feb. 13, had 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson scored 10 points apiece.