The Sacramento Kings somehow managed to fall to one of the three NBA teams with a worse record than them this season, suffering a 116-105 loss in Indiana on Monday night.
Falling 19 in the first half by repeatedly sending their opponents to the free-throw line proved too much to overcome, despite a respectable second half.
Westbrook led Sacramento with a triple-double (24 points, 14 assists, 13 rebounds), and DeRozan added 20 of his own as well. But allowing their opposition to jump out to a 19-point lead early and 26/28 from the free-throw line was too much to overcome.
Despite managing a higher field-goal percentage than the Pacers, the difference in shooting 7/22 from three compared to Indiana’s 14/35 was apparent.
Sacramento fought to make it close late, but their horrific start led to another loss, leaving them 6-18 against the Pacers with an identical record.
The Kings will head back home after a 2-1 road trip to face the Denver Nuggets on Thursday afternoon.
Kings @ Pacers Game Notes
Coming off what may have been their best win of the season, the Kings had a horrific start to their Monday night action in Indiana.
After heavily relying on Zach LaVine’s 42-point performance in Miami, the team and its teammates struggled to maintain any sort of consistency on either end of the floor.
Playing against an undermanned Pacers team that sat at 5-18 coming into the night, Sacramento looked outclassed. There’s no other way to say it.
Kings head coach Doug Christie had previously criticized their offensive possessions, which included only 1-3 passes, but that felt like all that was on display on Monday.
With tough shotmakers on their roster, some looks went down. Still, their identity was nowhere to be seen — unless you want to argue that their identity is, in fact, being an isolation-reliant offense that doesn’t play respectable defense.
Bennedict Mathurin led the opposition with the aggressive mindset he’s embraced in the absence of former King Tyrese Haliburton.
Bennedict Mathurin made ’em pay for leaving him wide open in the corner 🎯 pic.twitter.com/kJEp4lWGjR
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) December 9, 2025
Trailing 35-23 at the end of the first, Indiana was 12/13 from the free-throw line. No Sacramento player had more than one personal foul, but they had plenty of mishaps as a unit.
The second frame was more of the same defensively as their offense simultaneously sputtered. Between troubling turnovers and a lack of ball/player movement, it was clear why matters didn’t work in the Kings’ favor.
Indiana continued to push the pace, comfortably finding their way into the painted area. Never managing to build any momentum in the first half, their opponents dictated how the game went.
There were no clear highlights for the Kings, who looked confused en route to a 66-51 halftime deficit, as Indiana was 18-for-20 from the free-throw line due to an impressive number of fouls.
Mathurin led the Pacers with 19 points (seven coming from the free-throw line) while Pascal Siakam (13) and Andrew Nembhard (10) also contributed double-digits.
DeRozan (10 points) was the only Sacramento player to reach that tally by the midway point as their squad was 19/46 from the field (41.3%) and 4/16 from three.
Providing relentless and unquestionable effort on a nightly basis, Westbrook did his best to give life and energy to his squad in the third.
Having recorded the most triple-doubles in NBA history, he managed to record another in his Kings tenure by the end of the third.
RUSS pic.twitter.com/pgD6Y0zaQN
— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) December 9, 2025
Fighting through the tumutuouls start, he realized their scoring struggles and took matters into his own hands while feeding his teammates.
Limiting their turnovers after it had plagued their first-half efforts, they converted 14/22 from the field in the third frame, leading to an 11-point advantage (37-26) in the quarter.
Trailing 91-88 with 12 minutes remaining, it was anybody’s game. Westbrook continued to be surgical in the pick-and-roll, but both sides struggled to put the ball in the basket.
Andrew Nembhard made his presence felt, contributing 12 of his 28 points in the final frame. He led all scorers, while Mathurin (25) and Siakam (23) also reached 20+.
a DEEP three for Andrew Nembhard 🏹 pic.twitter.com/ljM52olkJG
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) December 9, 2025
Westbrook led Sacramento with a triple-double (24 points, 14 assists, 13 rebounds), and DeRozan added 20 of his own as well. But allowing their opposition to jump out to a 19-point lead early and 26/28 from the free-throw line was too much to overcome.
Despite managing a higher field-goal percentage than the Pacers, the difference in shooting 7/22 from three compared to Indiana’s 14/35 was apparent.
Sacramento fought to make it close late, but their horrific start led to another loss, leaving them 6-18 against the Pacers with an identical record.
The Kings will head back home after a 2-1 road trip to face the Denver Nuggets on Thursday afternoon.
More Sacramento Kings coverage on Sactown Sports
When the Sacramento Kings go through extended struggles, they tend to have drastic reactions to their underwhelming moments. Sitting at 5-17, 14th in the Western Conference, they’re at the point where people are expecting notable change.
While resetting and embracing a rebuild/youth movement would seem like the logical path, the Kings don’t typically follow that. Given the current standing and reportedly uncertain future of Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brenden Nunes, Chris Watkins, and Allen Stiles debated whether Sacramento should enter trade conversations.
It may seem crazy, and the chance that Antetokounmpo would be willing to re-sign in California’s capital would likely be limited, but Sacramento general manager Scott Perry could put together an enticing package for the former Most Valuable Player.
Read More:
Should the Sacramento Kings pursue Giannis Antetokounmpo?
Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Saturday, December 6th – @ Miami Heat – 5:00 PM PT
Monday, December 8th – @ Indiana Pacers – 4:00 PM PT
Thursday, December 11th – vs. Denver Nuggets – 7:00 PM PT
Sunday, December 14th – @ Minnesota Timberwolves – 4:00 PM PT
Thursday, December 18th – @ Portland Trail Blazers – 7:00 PM PT
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