Kings win two games in four days as a double digit underdog

The Sacramento Kings have won three straight games after only winning eight of their first 38 games to start the season. Since Sunday, they have beaten the Houston Rockets 111-98 as a 14 point underdog, the Los Angeles Lakers 124-112 as a 9.5 point underdog, and the New York Knicks 112-101 as an 11 point underdog.

In Sacramento’s impressive win over Houston, six Kings reached double digits in scoring. Power forward DeMar DeRozan of Compton, California led the way with 22 points. Shooting guard Zach Lavine of Renton, Washington had 18 points, point guard Russell Westbrook of Long Beach, California had 15 points, shooting guard Malik Monk of Jonesboro, Arkansas had 15 points, center Maxime Raynaud of Paris, France had 12 points, and center Precious Achiuwa of Port Harcourt, Nigeria had 10 points. Westbrook had a double-double as he had 10 assists. Meanwhile, center Dylan Cardwell of Augusta, Georgia led the Kings with 11 rebounds.

A major reason why the Kings beat the Rockets was their fourth quarter performance. They outscored Houston 33-22.

In Sacramento’s win over New York, all five starters reached double digits in points. DeRozan once again led the Kings in scoring with 27 points. LaVine had 25 points, Achiuwa had 20 points, Westbrook had 19 points and Raynaud had 10 points. Achiuwa had 14 rebounds and Westbrook had 11 assists.

Despite the three game winning streak, the Kings are still seven games back of the Memphis Grizzlies for the 10th spot in the Western Conference. That is a lot of ground to make up. It should be noted that all three of the Kings wins during the streak have been at home. On the road, the Kings have only won three of 20 games all year.