Paul George scores 30 points, but struggles late as Sixers blow lead in loss to Kings
George faded in the closing moments, however, committing three turnovers and three fouls as the Sixers relinquished a late nine-point lead.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Malik Monk pumped his arm in celebration, while Paul George threw his in disgust.
Monk had drawn the contact to force George’s exit with his sixth foul. Then, the Sacramento Kings guard sank two free throws to put his team up by four points with 7.4 seconds remaining, helping seal a stunning 113-107 comeback victory over the 76ers at Golden1 Center.
“It’s too bad, because we played really, really, really good tonight,” coach Nick Nurse said after the game. “We did. We played really, really good for 45 minutes. Obviously, [it] really, really got away from us in the last three. …
“I think a lot of breaks went [the Kings’] way. Going to happen sometimes, right? But I’m always analyzing how did we play, and I think we played pretty good.”
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The Kings scored the game’s final 15 points to snap the Sixers’ four-game winning streak. And it spoiled what, before a disastrous final minutes, had been one of George’s best performances with the Sixers. The perennial All-Star totaled 30 points, eight rebounds, and five assists. But he went scoreless in the fourth quarter and committed three turnovers and three fouls.
The defeat also came with the Sixers (13-18) playing without two starters, as former MVP Joel Embiid rested on the front end of a back-to-back and wing Kelly Oubre Jr. missed the game with a sprained left hand. Three rotation players, however, did return in center Andre Drummond (10 points, nine rebounds) and guards Eric Gordon (14 points, three assists) and Kyle Lowry (zero points).
George scored 20 in the first half, and made timely plays to keep the Sixers ahead after the break. When a three-pointer by Trey Lyles got Sacramento within 77-74 with less than five minutes remaining in the third quarter, George answered with a driving finish and a make from beyond the arc. After the Kings cut a 10-point Sixers advantage to 96-92 during George’s rest to start the final period, he dished a pass to Maxey for a deep three-pointer.
But things unraveled for George and the Sixers in the final 3:34. The Kings erased a nine-point deficit, tying the game at 107 on a DeMar DeRozan steal and layup with one minute to play. Following a missed floater by Maxey, Sacramento took its first lead since the third quarter’s opening minute, when the Sixers’ Guerschon Yabusele was called for goaltending on a Monk driving finish.
Wednesday’s outing initially appeared to be an encouraging sign for George, the Sixers’ splashy free-agency addition and smooth multi-level scorer who entered Wednesday shooting an uncharacteristic 40.5% from the floor while still looking for his spots playing alongside the All-Star tandem of Embiid and Maxey. It also came with a brief injury scare, when he hit the deck hard following a driving layup and spent time on the bench with a heating pad strapped to his lower back.
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Maxey added 27 points — including 12 in the third quarter — and six assists for the Sixers, who led, 89-80, entering the final period. Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis had already notched his NBA-leading 29th double-double of the season by halftime, and finished with 17 points, 21 rebounds, and seven assists.
The Sixers overcame a poor start on both ends to lead by as many as 14 points in the second quarter, when Gordon banged his third deep shot of the first half. But a 20-6 Kings run, primarily with George on the bench, brought the game to a tie at 57 on a De’Aaron Fox three-pointer just before the buzzer.
The Sixers will play the second half of a back-to-back Thursday at the Golden State Warriors, before concluding this six-game road stint on Saturday at the Brooklyn Nets.