The postseason got closer to coming to Sacramento on Monday night.
Behind a clutch game from Zach LaVine — who scored 17 of his 43 points in the fourth quarter — the gritty Kings picked a road win on the second night of a back-to-back, pulling away from the Pistons in the fourth quarter to win 127-117.
“All this stuff with us starts with defense and we have to lock in defensively…” said a frustrated J.B. Bickerstaff (via Omari Sankofa of the Detroit Free Press), who watched his Pistons get outscored 65-45 in the second half. “And 18 offensive rebounds is too many offensive rebounds. It’s hard to get your transition game going when you’re giving them second and third opportunities.”
With the win, the Kings have a one-game lead over the Mavericks for the No. 9 seed in the West, meaning Sacramento would host Dallas in the first play-in game.
Detroit remains the No. 6 seed in the East with the loss, but now is 1.5 games behind Milwaukee (two in the loss column), making it far less likely the Pistons will climb up to the standings. Finishing sixth would mean facing the Knicks in the first round.
DeMar DeRozan had a big night and scored 37 points for the Kings, who trailed by as many as 18 in the first half (when DeRozan was really carrying them). Domantas Sabonis had a triple-double: 19 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists.
Cade Cunningham had 35 to lead the Pistons.
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