SACRAMENTO – The Miami Heat made their once-a-year trip to Sacramento on Monday night and made it worthwhile, as the Kings narrowly escaped with a 123-118 double-overtime victory inside a deafening Golden 1 Center.
Tyler Herro and the Heat did everything they could to pull the plug on the Kings' victory beam with a game that went down to the wire on the second night of a back-to-back for Sacramento, but instead, purple lasers will light the Sacramento skyline for the fifth consecutive game as the team's win streak reached a new season high.
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The Kings were down by as many as 17 points following a second-half collapse, but they showed life again late in the fourth quarter to spark a comeback and force overtime.
No one was ready to go home yet, though, and double overtime ensued.
Both teams played without their stars, with De'Aaron Fox out with an injury and disgruntled veteran Jimmy Butler serving the second game of his suspension.
Tyler Herro went off for Miami, wasting no time getting to work. He had 12 points in the first quarter and finished with a team-high 26 points.
NBA
For the Kings, all starters finished in double digits for the second game in a row, with DeMar DeRozan leading all scorers with 30 points on 12-of-26 shooting.
DeMar from afar 😏
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 7, 2025
pic.twitter.com/AEAMI9KUc1
It appears a page has turned for Sacramento, as Doug Christie's record improved to 5-1 as interim coach since the firing of Mike Brown.
Here are the takeaways from the Kings' win:
Extra, Extra Basketball
As the Kings were down by one point with 0.2 seconds remaining, Heat center Bam Adebayo fouled Keon Ellis to send him to the free-throw line for two freebies with a chance to win it for Sacramento.
Instead, Ellis missed the first and made the second to force a double overtime.
DeMar from afar 😏
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 7, 2025
pic.twitter.com/AEAMI9KUc1
And who else other than DeRozan, one of the most clutch players in the league, to take over and help win it for the Kings. He had nine points in the extra five minutes and finished with 30 total points.
A King vs. a Herro
Playing without their star teammates, Malik Monk and Tyler Herro have filled a needed void for their respective teams.
Monk again was playing without Fox, who has missed the last two games with a glute injury, and stepped up massively for the Kings in their blowout victory over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.
He tied Steph Curry for a game-high 26 points, adding three rebounds, 12 assists, four steals and was a plus-41 in plus/minus rating in 29 minutes.
Monday night, Monk provided a needed energy for Sacramento, finishing with 23 points, five rebounds, six assists and two steals in nearly 49 minutes.
Malik with the hoop and the harm 😮💨
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 7, 2025
pic.twitter.com/7Cpb7o9Y1L
Meanwhile, Herro, playing without a suspended Butler for a second game, has been the constant Heat fans can rely on through a drama-filled time. He’s averaging a team-best 23.8 points this season and 5.1 rebounds.
Against the Kings on Monday night, Herro was 11 of 25 and finished with 26 points. But the Kings held him scoreless in both frames of overtime.
3-point shooting
The Kings have not proven to be a good 3-point shooting team this season.
It has been hard to watch the damage they did beyond the arc just two seasons ago to where they’re at now.
But the numbers don’t lie. And they didn’t lie over the last two games, when Sacramento shot the ball incredibly well from deep. Against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday, the Kings shot 21 of 47 (44.7 percent) from 3-point range and 19 of 43 (44.2 percent) from downtown in Sunday’s cooking of the Warriors.
Against Miami on Monday, however, Sacramento returned to mediocracy from beyond the arc.
The Kings shot just 13 of 38 (34.2 percent) from downtown Monday, closer to their average this season.
In the end, they found a way to get it done elsewhere around the floor. But they'll hope to get back to their 3-point shooting ways.