De’Aaron Fox fuels Kings past Hawks for third straight win

(Field Level Media) De’Aaron Fox scored a game-high 31 points to help the visiting Sacramento Kings to a 123-115 win over the Atlanta Hawks yesterday.

DeMar DeRozan added 27 points, while Domantas Sabonis tallied 15 points, 14 rebounds and six assists for the Kings, who won their third straight. Keegan Murray chipped in 14 points and 10 rebounds and Keon Ellis scored 12 points off the bench. Kevin Huerter had 10 points for Sacramento.

Trae Young led Atlanta with 25 points and 12 assists, while Garrison Mathews scored 23 points off the bench. Keaton Wallace added 14 and Onyeka Okongwu scored 11 for the Hawks, who dropped their fourth straight. Clint Capela chipped in 15 points and 10 boards, while Jalen Johnson scored 14.

The Kings, who led by 10 points at halftime, pushed their lead to 88-70 after DeRozan’s midrange jumper and Sabonis’ dunk forced an Atlanta timeout with 8:08 left in the third quarter.

After Mathews knocked down 3-pointers on consecutive Atlanta possessions to cut its deficit to 90-81 with 4:51 left in the third, DeRozan connected on three straight midrange jumpers to extend Sacramento’s lead to 15. The Kings held a 102-90 advantage entering the final quarter.

The Hawks erased an 11-point deficit and tied the score at 109 after Young’s midrange jumper capped an 11-0 run with 5:51 left in the game.

Sacramento responded as Fox and DeRozan combined for an 11-3 run to give the Kings a 120-112 lead with 1:25 remaining.

In the first quarter, Malik Monk’s dunk capped an 8-0 Sacramento run, giving the Kings a 22-11 lead with 4:12 left.

The Kings led by as many as 13 in the first quarter before Atlanta closed on an 8-2 run. Sacramento then jumped out to a 17-point lead in the second quarter as Trey Lyles’ gave the Kings a 45-28 lead with 9:15 left in the half.

Young’s triple capped a 9-0 Atlanta run, cutting its deficit to 56-53 with 3:29 left. The Kings finished the half on a 9-2 run and held a 69-59 advantage at the break. Fox paced the Kings with 14 points, while Young’s 12 points led Atlanta.