SACRAMENTO -- The Minnesota Timberwolves are a mess. The Kings are not. After dropping their previous two games, Sacramento turned up the speed in the second half and found a way to squeak out a win in the fourth quarter.
All five Kings starters scored in double-figures, and they survived a tremendous performance from Karl-Anthony Towns to come away with the 121-110 victory at Golden 1 Center.
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SIGN UP HERE Here are three takeaways as the Kings improve to 7-5 on the season:
WCS vs. KAT
The battle of the two former Kentucky teammates is always entertaining to watch. Towns was a wrecking ball in the first half, scoring 29 points before the break. The Kings made adjustments during the intermission, but Towns still managed to drop in 39 points and grab 19 rebounds on the evening.
Cauley-Stein ran the floor and finished with a solid night as well. The fourth-year pro led the Kings with 25 points on 11-for-16 shooting, and chipped in five rebounds.
NBA
In the end, Cauley-Stein’s Kings picked up the win, which is the only stat that matters.
Dealing
De’Aaron Fox ran the Kings’ offense to perfection. He’s not going to score 20 every night -- at least not yet -- but the 2017 first-round pick is the leader of this young Kings team.
Fox finished the evening with a modest 16-point, 10-assist double-double, along with two huge blocks on veteran Derrick Rose. He also failed to register a turnover in 32 minutes of action.
Revenge game
Nemanja Bjelica spent three seasons in Minnesota standing in the corner waiting for a pass that wasn’t coming. He joined the Kings late in the offseason and has made an instant impact as the team’s starting power forward.
Against his former teammates, Bjelica looked amped up early and struggled. He settled down in the third quarter and started dropping bombs from the perimeter. He finished the evening with 14 points on 6-for-13 shooting to go with eight rebounds and two blocks.
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