National Basketball Association
Sacramento 121, New Orleans 103
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, April 4, 2023
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Officials: #24 Kevin Scott, #54 Ray Acosta, #11 Derrick Collins
Attendance: 15799

Domantas Sabonis had a triple-double, Keegan Murray produced a barrage of 3-pointers and the visiting Sacramento Kings overcame a slow offensive start to rout the New Orleans Pelicans 121-103 on Tuesday night.

Sabonis finished with 16 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists and De'Aaron Fox added 23 points and nine assists as the Kings (48-31) won the Pacific Division for their first division title in 20 years.

Murray made 7 of 10 3-point attempts and Sacramento finished 17 of 42 (40.5 percent) from beyond the arc. Malik Monk scored 17 points off the bench, Harrison Barnes added 16 and Kevin Huerter had 11 for the Kings.

Brandon Ingram scored 22 points, but committed a career-high seven turnovers for the Pelicans (40-39), who lost for just the second time in nine games and missed an opportunity to clinch a spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament.

Trey Murphy III scored 17, Jonas Valanciunas had 13, CJ McCollum and Dyson Daniels had 12 each and Herbert Jones 11 for New Orleans, which made just 7 of 20 3-point tries (35 percent).

Sacramento took control by scoring 40 points in the second quarter, but McCollum's basket pulled New Orleans within 80-71 midway through the third quarter.

Murray made three consecutive 3-pointers and Sacramento opened a 96-80 lead at the end of the third quarter. He made 5 of 6 3-point tries and the Kings finished 6 of 9 in the period.

Barnes converted a three-point play to start the fourth-quarter scoring, and the Kings' lead didn't shrink below 14 points the rest of the way. Sacramento won the season series 2-1.

Ingram scored nine straight Pelicans points as the hosts took a 14-4 lead after four minutes. However, New Orleans scored just eight points in the next eight minutes.

Huerter and Sabonis each scored eight points and Monk beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer that gave the Kings a 25-22 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Fox scored 10 points and Monk and Barnes had nine each during the second quarter as Sacramento established a 65-54 halftime lead.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Sacramento   New Orleans
De'Aaron Fox 23 Scoring Brandon Ingram 22
Domantas Sabonis 11 Assists Brandon Ingram 6
Domantas Sabonis 12 Rebounds Jonas Valanciunas 8
Harrison Barnes 5 Free Throws Made Brandon Ingram 7
Harrison Barnes 3 Steals Brandon Ingram 2
Alex Len 2 Blocks Larry Nance Jr. 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Sacramento 121 50.5 17-42 12-15 35 43 4 8 12
New Orleans 103 44.0 7-20 22-27 20 37 4 6 14
Upcoming Games
  • New Orleans will play their next game at home against Memphis. The Pelicans have a W/L % of .537 after a win and .474 after a loss.
  • Sacramento will play their next game on the road against Dallas. The Kings have a W/L % of .583 after a win and .645 after a loss.