By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Phoenix Suns showed poise under pressure and took down the Sacramento Kings via a come-from-behind fashion, 119-117, in the ongoing NBA regular season last January 17, 2024.
After trailing by as much as 22 points, Phoenix already looked dead in the water after Sacramento just couldn’t miss from the shooting field.
However, the Suns stepped on the gas pedal and saved their best for last after capping off the fourth quarter with a 23-4 closing run.
As Phoenix trailed 113-96 midway through the fourth, the trio of Grayson Allen, Kevin Durant, and Eric Gordon sparked the Suns’ comeback and stunned the Kings when they made it rain from the three-point territory.
Durant kicked off the momentum-clinching 23-4 run with back-to-back three-pointers backstopped by Gordon’s splash party that cut Sacramento’s lead to single digits.
Disaster then struck the Kings after going ice-cold on the offensive end in the most crucial stretch of the fourth and final frame.
Gordon then hit a big trey to equalize the ball game at 115-all with only 45 seconds remaining in the game.
Phoenix gained some edge after completing a stop which led to a Durant trip to the free-throw line. The superstar small forward sank both of his shots from the charity stripe that gave the Suns a two-point lead, 117-115.
Answering the call for Sacramento was franchise cornerstone De’ Aaron Fox who tied the ball game at 117-all after hitting a clutch jumper with only 19 seconds remaining.
Needing someone to buy a bucket, Phoenix turned to Durant for their final offensive play that paid off dividends after he got fouled when he rose for a shot attempt.
The ice-cold Durant then drained the two most important free throws of the game that put Phoenix ahead by a deuce, 119-117.
With only a second remaining, the Kings still had enough time to produce the game-winning play but their long heave attempt missed badly.
Allen top-scored for the Suns and erupted for 29 points built from an insane 9/15 shooting from the rainbow area.
It was Allen who kept the Suns alive for most of the game between Durant and Gordon joined hands in the last five minutes of the nip-and-tuck affair.
Durant added 27 markers, five rebounds, four assists, and two blocks while Gordon chipped in 13 points off the bench.
With the win, Phoenix just extended its winning streak to three straight games while Sacramento suffered its third consecutive defeat in just five days.
