The gauntlet ended on a down note, as the Sacramento Kings put on a good comeback but couldn’t finish it off, and lost 114-106 to the Washington Wizards in the finale. Still, the Kings finished their run with an impressive 18-11 record.
Six Kings scored in double-figures, led by Peja Stojakovic’s 19 points. This time around, Sacramento had the edge at the foul line, going 30-for-39 to the Wizards’ 16-for-20, but Washington outshot Sacramento from the field, 51.1% to 41.0%.
Washington put seven into double-figures, led by Elvin Hayes’ 22 points. Hayes (10 rebounds), Walt Bellamy (15 points, 10 rebounds) and Gilbert Arenas (11 points, 10 assists) had double-doubles.
Other than a four-game losing streak in the first portion of the season, it’s the only other time the Kings have lost consecutive games.
The Kings led twice right at the start of the game, but not again until midway through the fourth quarter. Washington built leads of 15-7, then 28-14, and then John Wall scored the final five points of the first quarter to give the Wizards a 37-20 lead.
Washington scored the first basket of the second quarter to take what would be their largest lead of the game at 19 points. After trailing 45-30, the Kings got the deficit down to eight at 49-41, but they still trailed 61-51 at halftime.
The Kings scored the first six points of the third quarter to make it a four-point game at 61-57, but Washington responded with a 9-1 run to increase the lead back up to 12 at 70-58. Then the Kings went on a run, getting the score down to five points at 74-69 and three points at 81-78. It was 83-78 entering the fourth quarter.
Vlade Divac scored the first two baskets of the fourth quarter to make it a one-point game at 83-82. The Kings tied it at 85 and 87, then finally broke through and took the lead at 91-89 after a Stojakovic three-pointer. There were four lead changes over the next few minutes, but Washington regained the lead for good at 94-93 with six minutes left after an Arenas basket. It was 99-97 with five minutes left, but the Wizards scored the next six points and the Kings couldn’t overcome the deficit down the stretch.
ROGER SPORTS & GAMES 