By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Sacramento Kings officially eliminated the Golden State Warriors from an NBA playoff contention after crushing them during their NBA play-in showdown, 114-98, on April 17, 2024.
It was a sweet revenge exacted by Sacramento after losing at the hands of the Warriors during the first round of the NBA playoffs last year.
Despite facing Golden State with a banged-up lineup as they missed the presence of Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter, the Kings received an All-Star performance from young and upcoming shooting guard Keegan Murray who torched the Warriors with 32 big points.
The talented shooter waxed hot as early as the first quarter and already had 11 markers after the end of the first 12 minutes.
After their win against Golden State, Murray capped off his solid night with an efficient 10/20 shooting from the field including eight made three-pointers.
Aside from his offensive performance, Murray also stuffed the stat sheets as he was able to grab nine rebounds and tally two perfect steals.
It was a wire-to-wire victory pulled off by the Kings after taking control of the lead from the get-go. Throughout the 48-minute game, Golden State never re-captured the lead and was playing catch-up until the final buzzer sounded.
Keon Ellis, a late fill-in to the starting five unit of Sacramento due to the injuries of Monk and Huerter, also stepped up for head coach Mike Brown after hounding Stephen Curry all night long while also producing on the offensive end.
Ellis wrapped up his first NBA play-in performance with 15 markers, five dimes, four rebounds, three steals, and three blocks.
De’Aaron Fox, who started the game slow after missing several wide-open shots, recovered late in the second quarter to finish with an all-around outing of 24 points, six assists, four rebounds, and two steals.
On the other hand, it was a nightmare performance from the Warriors after only converting 10 out of their 32 total attempts from the rainbow country.
Curry was the only player for Golden State to reach the 20-point scoring mark and ended his final game of the season with 22 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a block.
Meanwhile, his splash brother, Klay Thompson, had a horrible night shooting the leather after failing to enter the scoring column in 31 minutes of playing time.
With the victory over the Warriors, the Kings revived their playoff hopes and will next face the New Orleans Pelicans for the final post-season spot in the Western Conference.
