Sacramento Kings beat Clippers at Staples again

Sacramento Kings' Kent Bazemore (26) dribbles past Los Angeles Clippers' Reggie Jackson (1) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Feb. 22, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Sacramento Kings' Kent Bazemore (26) dribbles past Los Angeles Clippers' Reggie Jackson (1) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Feb. 22, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

LOS ANGELES - Kent Bazemore scored a season-high 23 points, Bogdan Bogdanovic added 20 and the Sacramento Kings beat the Los Angeles Clippers on the road for the second time in less than a month, winning 112-103 on Saturday.

De'Aaron Fox had 20 points and eight assists for the surging Kings. They have won two straight out of the All-Star break and eight of 12 overall.

Sacramento blew a 14-point lead in the second half to a Clippers lineup missing injured stars Paul George and Patrick Beverley. But the Kings then shut out Kawhi Leonard and the Clips for more than five straight minutes down the stretch, making a decisive 10-0 run capped by Harry Giles' percussive dunk with 58 seconds left.

Leonard scored 31 points in his return from his MVP performance in Chicago, but the Clippers returned from the All-Star break with their first three-game losing streak of the season. Lou Williams added 24 points, and Montrezl Harrell had 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Sacramento had a big lead late in the third quarter, but the Clippers took their first lead of the day on Harrell's leap-and-lean bucket with 8:30 to play.

The Kings reclaimed the lead on Harry Giles' putback score with 4:17 left, and Bogdanovic hit a clutch 3-pointer two minutes later.

With the Clippers comfortably in third place in the Western Conference, George and Beverley are both getting extra time off to rest persistent injuries.

Reggie Jackson scored eight points in his Clippers debut two days after the Pistons bought him out, while Marcus Morris had six points and five turnovers in 32 minutes in his home debut nearly two weeks after the Clippers acquired him in a three-way trade.

With George and Beverley sidelined, Clippers coach, Doc Rivers used his 28th starting lineup in 56 games, putting newcomers Morris and Jackson in the mix. Perhaps unsurprisingly, these unfamiliar Clippers returned from eight days off and missed 13 of their first 14 shots on their way to a 4-for-24 first quarter with five turnovers.

Sacramento wasn't much better, but Bazemore scored 15 points in the first half. Los Angeles had more turnovers than field goals until late in the half, but Jackson's first basket for the Clippers was a 3-pointer in the final second before halftime.

 

Nets 115, Hornets 86

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot led a balanced scoring attack with 21 points and the Brooklyn Nets snapped the Charlotte Hornets' three-game win streak with a 115-86 victory on Saturday night.

Eight Brooklyn players scored in double figures, including Caris LeVert with 17. Garrett Temple added 15 points and 10 rebounds, Jarrett Allen had 12 points and 11 rebounds and the Nets bounced back from a 112-104 overtime loss to the 76ers on Thursday night.

P.J. Washington had 16 points for the Hornets.

Brooklyn built a 10-point halftime lead and outscored the Hornets 33-13 in the third quarter to take control.

The Hornets managed to beat the Bulls in Chicago on Thursday night without co-leading scoring Devonte Graham scoring a point. But they couldn't replicate the feat against the Nets with Graham struggling to find the bottom of the net again. The second-year point guard, who has thrust himself into the conversation for the league's Most Improved Player, was limited to six points on 1-of-10 shooting.

The Nets are in the midst of a stretch of eight of 10 games on the road. They are 3-2 so far during that stretch.

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