If you anticipated a Kevin Huerter revenge game in his first matchup against the Sacramento Kings since being traded, your hunch was correct.
Huerter, who made his return to Golden 1 Center after being included in the three-team trade that brought Zach LaVine to the Kings and sent De’Aaron Fox to San Antonio, established a new Chicago Bulls career-high of 25 points to go along with four rebounds and seven assists to lead his team to a 128-116 win on Thursday night.
Sacramento was riding high off a surprising win over the NBA-best Cleveland Cavaliers one night prior and appeared to be well on their way to another victory in this one, but a 19-point lead quickly turned into a deficit after Chicago turned the tables once play entered the second half.
The Kings (35-34) squandered an opportunity to pad its lead over the Phoenix Suns for the ninth seed spot in the Western Conference standings but instead dropped its advantage to 2.5 games with 13 contests to go.
A Jekyll & Hyde season continues for Sacramento, and the past 24 hours of basketball clearly encapsulate the roller-coaster of emotions this team has endured.
This was TOUGH, Kevin Huerter 😮💨
Spinning lay to give the Bulls the lead! pic.twitter.com/jdhWq0GYjV
— NBA (@NBA) March 21, 2025
Kings vs. Bulls recap & takeaways
After scoring 20+ points in back-to-back games, it didn’t take long for Malik Monk to assert himself against the Chicago defense.
Monk caught fire from beyond the arc, going four-for-four from three-point land during the first four minutes of action to help Sacramento pick up right where they left off 24 hours prior.
The Sacramento Kings went 11-of-17 (65%) from deep during the first quarter, with Monk (five-of-seven) and Trey Lyles (four-for-four) leading the way as Sacramento put the Bulls in an 11-point hole as play entered the second period.
Not only did the Kings find an early rhythm from long distance, but they also held Chicago in check from deep on their end of the floor. The Bulls ended the first half just four-of-14 (29%) from three-point land, but they dominated the paint (34-10) to keep themselves within Sacramento’s reach.
Monk and Lyles combined to score 33 of the Kings’ 64 first-half points, but those two players needed some help from the rest of the roster as Chicago was able to trim a 19-point deficit to nine heading into the third quarter.
11 THREES IN THE FIRST QUARTER FOR THE KINGS 🤯
They lead heading into the 2Q on NBA TV! pic.twitter.com/i02JtOBigq
— NBA (@NBA) March 21, 2025
Sacramento’s once-comfortable evaporated into thin air in the third as the Bulls opened the second half on a 30-16 run.
The Kings got sloppy on both ends of the floor, matching their turnover total from the first half (five) during the third quarter as old friend Kevin Huerter and the Chicago offense continued to expose a weak Sacramento interior defense.
Noted Kings-killer Coby White, who was quiet during the first half (four points), lifted the Bulls offense in the third by scoring 15 points–with all of them but three coming in the Sacramento paint–to help Chicago retake the lead for the first time since the opening minutes of the first quarter.
Outside of Monk, Lyles, and DeMar DeRozan, the Kings didn’t get much support on the offensive end, and the Bulls took advantage by securing a three-point lead with twelve minutes to play.
Sacramento’s defense failed to string together consecutive stops in the fourth, allowing Chicago–namely, White and Huerter–to get what they wanted on their end of the floor as the Kings watched their deficit grow by each passing minute.
While Sacramento stopped the bleeding in the paint, three-point shooting lifted the Bulls in the second half as Chicago knocked down 11 of their 21 attempts (52%), with Huerter hitting four of his six opportunities from the perimeter.
Three of Coby White’s four highest-scoring games have taken place at Golden 1 Center, and the veteran guard added a 35-point (31 points in the second half) to his resume to lead his team in scoring on Thursday night.
Coby White is up to 30 PTS…
IN THE SECOND HALF ALONE 🤯
Bulls leading late on NBA League Pass! pic.twitter.com/LxkCnNlZG5
— NBA (@NBA) March 21, 2025
White and Huerter proved too deadly for a lethargic Sacramento defense, and with Monk (34 points) the Kings’ lone go-to option in the clutch, the Bulls never looked back once their second-half run started.
I think we thought we had it and just relaxed,” Monk said of his team’s meltdown. “We’ll get better.”
Huerter may have shined against his old squad, but LaVine–the other headline player involved in the De’Aaron Fox trade–struggled in his return from a one-game absence.
LaVine finished with eight points on just two-of-nine shooting from the field over 33 minutes, marking the second time in his Kings tenure he has attempted less than ten field goal attempts after logging more than 30 minutes of playing time.
It wasn’t just LaVine that struggled for Sacramento, though. After going 11-of-17 from deep in the first quarter, the Kings finished the night four-of-22 (18%) from beyond the arc during the final three-quarters of regulation.
“Unacceptable. You can’t let people just come into your house and do what they want,” interim head coach Doug Christie said following the loss. “There’s a lot there that’s unacceptable. Super, super disappointed. And I told them this one should hurt. It should hurt if you care about it. Really bad.”
Sacramento went ice cold from deep, where they found success during their recent tw0-game winning streak, while Huerter and the Bulls flipped the script.
The Kings won’t have much time to feel sorry for themselves with three tough matchups on the horizon against Milwaukee, Boston, and Oklahoma City. Beating Cleveland was a signature win for this team, but games like Thursday act as a reminder that the true identity of this team is still a mystery.
25K For Deebo
With his field goal at the 1:56 mark of the third quarter, Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan has reached 25,000 career points in the regular season, becoming the 27th player in NBA history to hit the 25,000-point mark.
Injury Update
Domantas Sabonis (right ankle sprain) will miss at least ten days after suffering an injury during Monday’s win over Memphis. The Kings will be without the All-NBA center for their season-long seven-game homestand.
When is the next Sacramento Kings game?
The Sacramento Kings will continue its season-long seven-game homestand against the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night.
Milwaukee handed Sacramento a 130-115 loss on January 14th at the Fiserv Forum, thanks to 33 points and 13 rebounds from Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Since the start of the 2016-17 season, Sacramento is 1-16 against the Bucks.
Be sure to catch all of the Sacramento Kings vs. Milwaukee Bucks drama right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage starting at 5:30 PM PT on Game Night before action tips off at 7:00 PM PT from downtown Sacramento.
Upcoming schedule for the 2024-25 Sacramento Kings
Saturday, March 22nd – vs. Milwaukee Bucks – 7:00 PM PT
Monday, March 24th – vs. Boston Celtics – 7:00 PM PT
Tuesday, March 25th – vs. Oklahoma City Thunder – 7:00 PM PT
Thursday, March 27th – vs. Portland Trail Blazers – 7:00 PM PT
Saturday, March 29th – @ Orlando Magic – 2:00 PM PT
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