Basketball: Kings knock out Nets from deep

SACRAMENTO – Terence Davis amassed a game-high and season-best 31 points off the bench and teamed up with Kevin Huerter for 12 of Sacramento’s 20 three-pointers on Tuesday night, as coach Mike Brown said the “sky is the limit” for his Kings after their 153-121 thrashing of the visiting Brooklyn Nets.

Huerter finished with 19 points, Domantas Sabonis 17, Harrison Barnes 16, Malik Monk 15, De’Aaron Fox 14 and Trey Lyles 12 as the Kings won for the fourth straight time after starting their season 0-4. They have won seven of their nine games since.

The 153 points were the most scored by a Kings team since 154 against the Philadelphia 76ers in January 1993.

‘’It’s a great feeling,’‘ said Brown, who joined in May. ‘‘It’s why we are a team... We have had guys contribute on multiple nights off the bench. Sky is the limit when you start to have that happen.’‘

Kevin Durant used 11 free throws to put up a team-high 27 points for the Nets, who lost their second straight game after opening a three-game California swing with a victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.

Said Nets coach Jacque Vaughn: “I don’t know if our minds, our bodies and souls are still in LA. LA can do that to you sometimes... We definitely gave maximum effort against the Clippers and we’ve been reeling ever since.”

Brooklyn pulled into a 40-40 tie in the third minute of the second period before Davis connected on two three-pointers, a short jumper and a dunk in a 16-0 flurry that put the visitors behind for good.

Riding the momentum of a 122-115 home win over reigning champions the Golden State Warriors, on Sunday, the Kings led by 19 in the first half, then 115-82 by third quarter’s end.

Davis’ points tally was the product of 12-for-16 shooting and a seven-for-10 run from three-point range. He also found time for a game-high nine rebounds and three steals. Huerter buried five of seven three-point attempts, helping the Kings to a 60-33 advantage in points from beyond the arc.

He said: ‘’It’s fun. You keep winning and people want to see you play. We got good momentum here right now.”

Fox also dished out a game-high nine assists, while Sabonis complemented his 17 points on six-for-six shooting with seven assists and seven rebounds. The Kings outshot the Nets 59.6 per cent to 49.4 per cent.

Durant was a one-man show in his 31 minutes for the Nets, who were still missing the suspended Kyrie Irving. Durant outscored his closest teammate (Edmond Sumner) by nine points and had six of Brooklyn’s 25 assists and four of their 29 rebounds.

He said: ‘’We had great intentions. They made shots. That’s demoralising when you see teams making shots. It’s not like we didn’t try. They were better than us.’‘

Coming off the bench, Ben Simmons led the Nets with five rebounds to go with 11 points. Cam Thomas added 12 points and Yuta Watanabe 11.

The 153 points allowed equalled the second-most in Nets history. Back when they were playing in New Jersey, the Nets lost 161-157 in two overtimes to the Phoenix Suns in December 2006. REUTERS