Phoenix Suns (35-26) beat Sacramento Kings (14-49) 114-103 on the road on Tuesday, March 3, after falling far behind. The Suns were down 8 at one quarter break and still finished 11 ahead.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Kings struck first, taking the opening quarter 30-22 and a 8-point lead after one. The Suns moved in front with a 37-25 second quarter, carrying a 4-point lead into halftime.
The Suns won the third 31-20 to create some separation, taking a 15-point lead into the fourth. The Kings took the fourth 28-24; the Suns held on for a 114-103 regulation win.
What flipped it
The Suns grabbed 40% of their own misses, while the Kings recovered 27.1%. The Suns got more from their shots, finishing at 56% effective field-goal shooting compared with 49.4% for the Kings. The second chances kept adding up.
The Kings did win one battle, ball security: TOV% of 14.2 against 18.9. The Suns made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 100 possessions per team, the Suns produced 114.3 points per 100 possessions to 103.3 for the Kings.
The Suns' reserves also made a difference, outscoring the opposing bench 40-20.
Who carried the comeback
Maxime Raynaud was the game's biggest individual force for SAC: 22 pts, 10 reb, 4 ast on 10-12 shooting. His Game Score of 22 led everyone. His team was +3 with him on the floor.
Collin Gillespie led the Suns with 17 pts, 5 reb, 9 ast on 6-10 shooting, good for a 19.2 Game Score.
Maxime Raynaud (22 pts, 10 reb, 4 ast) and Oso Ighodaro (14 pts, 14 reb, 3 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 62% for the Suns.
Across the last 7 meetings in our records, Phoenix Suns lead 4-3.
The Suns are now 35-26, and the Kings are 14-49. The Suns last five before this game: L-W-L-L-W.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.