Frustrating. Numerous calls went against the Kings and almost always resulted in points for Denver. But that’s not an excuse when the Kings were up by 17 points earlier in the game. The Nuggets took a six-point lead with about a minute remaining and then the Cardiac Kings struck with a 6-0 run. After Nikola Jokic tipped in his own shot, Hield had a chance to win it with a three but came up short. Kings are now 30-27 on the season and drop to the 9th seed.

Quarter-by-Quarter Recap

This first quarter was probably one of the best ones this year by the Kings. They got off to a hot start and were shooting 9-13 at one point, ending the quarter at 16-24 from the field. They held a double-digit lead over the Nuggets for most of the quarter as Isaiah Thomas made his awaited return. The Nuggets shot a solid 14-26. The Kings also had a assist-to-turnover ratio of 11-2. Sacramento was led by Buddy Hield’s 11 points on 4-6 shooting, while De’Aaron Fox was 3-3 for seven points. Paul Millsap scored 10 for Denver as the Kings led 41-30.

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone getting ejected was the most entertaining thing that happened in the quarter. The Kings gave up their big lead as the Nuggets made it really close towards the end of the quarter. However, the Kings responded with a 7-0 run to push the lead back to double-digits. A Marvin Bagley three with a second remaining made it 69-58 to end the first half. Nice. Hield led the Kings with 13 while Nemanja Bjelica had a big 11 points, too. Millsap led the Nuggets with 15 points.

And just like the last matchup in Sacramento, the Kings gave away their double-digit after Thomas made a three for Denver. Fitting. Thomas scored eight points in the period. Denver outscored Sacramento 35-22 as the Kings offense was stagnant. Lack of ball movement and off-ball movement forced players to play isolation ball against a team who is very good at defending that – not going to work. Hield still led the team with 17 points despite shooting 6-16 overall and 1-6 from three. Millsap still led the Nuggets with 21 as Sacramento trailed 93-91.

Both teams scored 27 points in this quarter as Denver’s Malik Beasley also got ejected after getting two technical fouls. The Kings were down 112-118 late in the game but went on a 6-0 run to tie it up. However, Nikola Jokic tipped his own missed shot to give the Nuggets a 120-118 lead with 0.8 seconds left on the clock. Hield’s attempted three came close but there was no miracle this time. Kings lose a tough one and drop to 30-27.

Best Players

Buddy Hield was tied for the most points in the game with Paul Millsap. Hield scored 25 but shot a rough 9-23 overall and 2-7 from three. He also added five rebounds, three rebounds and an assist.

De’Aaron Fox had a double-double today with 15 points and 10 assists along with four rebounds on 6-11 shooting. Fox did have four really bad turnovers.

Harrison Barnes is giving this team an additional threat they desperately needed. Barnes came up with 19 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals in 41 minutes. He did shoot a poor 7-19 overall and was 3-9 from three.

Willie Money Watch

Willie Cauley-Stein only played 22 minutes today. He finished with eight points on 3-5 shooting, seven rebounds, three assists and five steals. He also had two clutch free throws in that 6-0 run.

Notable Stats

Marvin Bagley only played 23 minutes today. He had 11 points on 4-7 shooting along with three rebounds and a beautiful assist to Yogi Ferrell.

Alec Burks only played seven minutes today and came up with two rebounds and two assists. Second straight game with no points for Burks.

Sacramento was 23-28 from the free throw line, which is really good for them. They’re barely around 70% as a team on the season.

Kings were outrebounded 53-44 but had more assists at 30-26.

Denver won the fast break battle at 23-20 and the points in the paint battle 68-54.

The Game in One Sentence

This is a tough loss considering the Kings had a big lead, but a much needed break arrives.

Next Game

From playing the second best team in the West, to the first. The Kings travel to Oakland to take on the Golden State Warriors on Thursday, February 21st at 7:30 PM PST.

Enjoy All-Star weekend!