SACRAMENTO (AP) — De’Aaron Fox scored 21 points including a leaning, one-handed dunk as part of a pivotal run late in the fourth quarter, and the Sacramento Kings beat the Memphis Grizzlies 97-92 on Wednesday night.
Buddy Hield had 23 points, Willie Cauley-Stein added 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Nemanja Bjelica had 11 points and 11 boards for the Kings.
Fox scored 10 in the third quarter to help Sacramento erase an eight-point deficit, but made only one basket over the final 17 minutes.
It was an impressive one.
After Bjelica stole the ball near midcourt, a sprinting Fox took the pass and dunked left-handed over Memphis center Marc Gasol.
Fox’s jam brought the Golden1 Center crowd to its feet and sparked a 14-4 run that put the Kings up for good.
Gasol exited with 5:54 remaining due to an undisclosed injury. He finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Mike Conley scored 27 points while Jaren Jackson had 14 points and seven rebounds for Memphis. Wayne Selden added 13 points.
The Grizzlies were coming off consecutive impressive wins over Atlanta and Utah following a season-opening, 28-point loss to Indiana.
Memphis led by 14 in the first half but was held to 19 points in the third quarter and 21 in the fourth.
Gasol scored five points and Selden and Omri Casspi came off the bench to make 3-pointers as part of a 15-5 run to close out the first quarter.
The Grizzlies led by 14 midway through the second quarter before the Kings made a late run of their own to pull to 52-44 at halftime.
TIP-INS
Grizzlies: Chandler Parsons did not play because of right knee soreness.
Kings: Marvin Bagley III had 13 points and six rebounds. The second overall pick in the draft continues to come off the bench for coach Dave Joerger’s squad. ... Iman Shumpert was held out with a sore left hip. Shumpert started the previous two games. ... Justin Jackson started at small forward in place of Shumpert. Zach Randolph, who spent eight seasons in Memphis and led the Grizzlies to the Western Conference finals in 2013, was also held out.
UP NEXT
Grizzlies: Host the Phoenix Suns on Saturday.
Kings: Host the Washington Wizards on Friday.
