Sacramento Kings (17-51) beat LA the Clippers (34-33) 118-109 on the road on Saturday, March 14.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Kings had the better start, winning the first 33-31 to lead by 2 after one. The Kings kept the pressure on with a 35-23 second quarter, carrying a 14-point lead into halftime.
The Kings won the third 24-21 to create some separation, taking a 17-point lead into the fourth. The Clippers took the fourth 34-26; the Kings held on for a 118-109 regulation win.
What decided it
The Kings got more from their shots, finishing at 65.9% effective field-goal shooting compared with 51.8% for the Clippers. The Kings grabbed 25.7% of their own misses, while the Clippers recovered 18.8%. That shooting gap supplied the clearest edge.
The Clippers did win one battle, the free-throw line: FT rate of 26.2 against 12.2. The Kings made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 100 possessions per team, the Kings produced 118.1 points per 100 possessions to 109.1 for the Clippers.
Who made the difference
Precious Achiuwa was the game's biggest individual force for SAC: 25 pts, 13 reb, 1 ast, 4 blk on 10-14 shooting. His Game Score of 24.2 led everyone. His team was +18 with him on the floor.
Darius Garland led the Clippers with 25 pts, 3 reb, 7 ast on 9-20 shooting, good for a 20.4 Game Score.
Precious Achiuwa (25 pts, 13 reb, 1 ast) and Russell Westbrook (12 pts, 12 reb, 10 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
By our Win Meter this was an upset: The Kings entered with about a 10% chance.
Across the last 6 meetings in our records, LA the Clippers lead 6-0.
The Kings are now 17-51, and the Clippers are 34-33. The Kings last five before this game: L-L-W-W-L.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.