As strong as the Sacramento Kings looked for three quarters on Saturday night, they fell twelve minutes short of securing another impressive win on this homestand.
Sacramento led most of the night, but a late charge from Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks erased the Kings’ 14-point lead and created just enough space late to secure a 114-108 win at Golden 1 Center.
For the second-straight game, Sacramento (35-35) failed to hold a double-digit lead as they followed up a disappointing loss to the Chicago Bulls with a defeat to Milwaukee.
Losses at this point always sting, but this one hurts a little more for the Kings as they watched their slim lead over Phoenix and Dallas for the ninth-seed spot in the Western Conference standings shrink to 1.5 games with 12 to go.
Giannis finishes with 22 in the third quarter!!!
He’s got 31 for the night and it’s a 3-PT game heading into the 4Q 🍿🍿
MIL-SAC on NBA TV. https://t.co/uHZlzlFHKM pic.twitter.com/UviNqaYlgk
— NBA (@NBA) March 23, 2025
Kings vs. Bucks recap & takeaways
Malik Monk (illness) was ruled out hours before tip-off, meaning Sacramento would be down one of their top scorers against Milwaukee’s top-ten-ranked defense. Even with Monk sidelined, the Kings found a way to punch first on Saturday night.
Keegan Murray displayed an aggressive approach on offense, creating off the dribble and attacking the rim on one end while also handling the daunting task of defending two-time NBA MVP winner Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Murray and the Sacramento offense opened things up with a 24-11 run while shooting 70 percent from the field over the first nine minutes of play, but ice-cold shooting from the perimeter (1/10 from deep in the first quarter) kept the Bucks within striking distance.
While he isn’t known as a volume scorer, Keon Ellis did his best impression of Monk while filling into a starting role, scoring 15 of his 18 first-half points in the second quarter (tying his career-high for most points scored in a single period) to keep a suddenly-sluggish Kings offense afloat.
Outside of Ellis’ three-of-four start from the perimeter, Sacramento shot one-of-16 (6%) from three-point range during the first half but managed to keep pace in paint scoring and take a 61-49 advantage into the halftime break.
Keon Ellis = elite shooter. pic.twitter.com/s0XLqgGYKn
— Skyler (KFR) (@SacFilmRoom) March 23, 2025
As the Kings struggled to create consistent offense outside of Ellis, the Bucks made their move during the third quarter.
Although Sacramento pushed its lead to 13 points during the opening minutes of the second half, Antetokounmpo woke up from a slow start to score 22 points in the period as Milwaukee trimmed its deficit to 89-86 heading into the fourth.
The Kings held the lead for most of the night until an 18-11 Bucks run put Milwaukee back in front with less than six minutes to play, and a stagnant Sacramento offense continued to squander opportunities.
An isolation-heavy approach came back to bite the Kings, as DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine took turns hoisting mid-range jumpers down the final stretch. DeRozan scored nine points in the fourth, but a lack of ball movement created several failed attempts, which spelled disaster as the Bucks got whatever they wanted on their end of the floor.
Milwaukee, who struggled from the perimeter for three quarters, knocked down six of its nine attempts from deep in the fourth while shooting 59 percent from the field. The Kings’ jammed-up offense shot eight-of-19 (42%) from the field and finished the night nine-of-38 (23%) from beyond the arc.
Sacramento is now 5-14 (.263) this season when shooting under 30 percent from long distance.
Deeboooooo 😤🕘 pic.twitter.com/NkCQQUirQC
— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) March 23, 2025
Zach LaVine, who attempted just nine field goal attempts during Thursday’s loss to Chicago, continued to struggle against the Bucks, scoring 16 points on seven-of-17 shooting (one-of-five from three-point land) over 38 minutes.
LaVine has failed to score 20 points in four of his past six games, with Sacramento losing all four of those contests.
As bad as the Kings’ three-point shooting was on Saturday, Antetokounmpo’s massive third quarter likely spelled defeat for Sacramento. Keegan Murray did the best he could while defending the 6’11 superstar, but too much damage was done in the third as Milwaukee firmly asserted itself back in the game.
“I think we let him get comfortable,” Murray said of Antetokounmpo’s big quarter. “We’ve got to build a wall against him, and he was able to split that a couple of times. That’s just something we’ve got to be better at.”
Defending Antetokounmpo is a nightmare for the rest of the NBA, but especially for a team like the Kings, who lack defensive versatility at the forward positions. The last time these two teams played, Domantas Sabonis took a shot at defending the star, to no avail, as well.
Things won’t get any easier for Sacramento, as they will play their most harrowing 24 hours of basketball starting Monday when they begin a back-to-back with the defending champion Boston Celtics.
The Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder will be awaiting the Kings on Tuesday night, meaning that Sacramento will have to dig deep if they hope to avoid another lengthy losing streak at a crucial point in the season.
“We have a team that has the ability to win these games,” Kings interim head coach Doug Christie said of the loss. “These are games that we can win, and that we should have won the last two, in my opinion. That falls on me.”
Injury Updates
Malik Monk (illness) was ruled out for Saturday’s game and is considered day-to-day.
Domantas Sabonis (right ankle sprain) will be re-evaluated after the Kings’ seven-game homestand.
When is the next Sacramento Kings game?
The Sacramento Kings will continue its season-long seven-game homestand against the Boston Celtics on Saturday night.
On January 10th, the Kings surprised the Celtics by handing Boston a 114-97 win at TD Garden behind 24 points and nine assists from DeMar DeRozan.
Sacramento hasn’t defeated the Celtics at Golden 1 Center since February 3, 2021.
Be sure to catch all of the Sacramento Kings vs. Boston Celtics drama right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage starting at 2:o0 PM PT on The Drive Guys before action tips off at 7:00 PM PT from downtown Sacramento.
Upcoming schedule for the 2024-25 Sacramento Kings
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
Monday, March 31st – @ Indiana Pacers – 4:00 PM PT
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