De’Aaron Fox and Trey Lyles lift Kings in OT win over T-wolves
Through three quarters Monday night, Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox was having a very different game than two nights earlier against the same Minnesota Timberwolves.
Fox was 2 of 12 from the field going into the fourth quarter Saturday, but on this night he entered the final period with 20 points on efficient shooting. Fox was carrying Sacramento’s offense on another down shooting night from the perimeter scorers in the team’s starting lineup, so he went to work against a long Timberwolves defense headed by 6-foot-9 forward Jaden McDaniels.
Fox bobbed and weaved, looking for switches onto smaller defenders. He threw in two floaters, a 25-foot 3-pointer and a free throw over the final 2:36 to help send the game to overtime. It gave the All-Star hopeful eight points in clutch time in the fourth, after coming into the game averaging 4.5 points in clutch situations, good for fourth in the NBA. It wasn’t quite the 21-point fourth-quarter performance from Saturday, but his game Monday night helped get the Kings to overtime, where they eventually beat the Timberwolves comfortably, 118-111.
“His pace and him being in attack mode was a lot of fun,” Kings coach Mike Brown said of Fox, who finished with 32 points, five rebounds and four assists.
The Kings again had off nights from marksmen Kevin Huerter, Keegan Murray and Harrison Barnes. That trio combined to shoot 9 of 30 and the Kings made just 1 of 14 from 3-point range in the first half.
Malik Monk gave Sacramento a boost with 19 points off the bench, the most he’s had since scoring 33 against the Denver Nuggets on Dec. 28. Monk added three steals, but the defensive player of the game chain went to Barnes, who had four. Murray scored 13 points with 13 rebounds, including six offensive boards.