The Sacramento Kings earned a valuable victory in the battle to avoid the play-in tournament after defeating the Memphis Grizzlies 121-111 at home in overtime in an NBA regular season game. Bulgarian national player Alexander Vezenkov has already resumed full-fledged training with the team after a long absence due to injury, but did not take part in this meeting either.
In Sacramento, the two teams played an even game, exchanging the lead nine times in regulation, and the hosts had a 12-point lead in the third period, but it ended up going to overtime. In it, Malik Monk took matters into his own hands and scored 12 of the Kings' 16 points to lead the team to victory No. 39 of the season.
Monk, who is among the favorites for reserve of the year, finished with a total of 28 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists, center Domantas Sabonis had another double-double - 25 points and 18 rebounds, and star De'Aaron Fox had 23 points and 10 assists. For the Grizzlies, Jaron Jackson scored 25 points and Desmond Bain added 24.
With this success, Sacramento cemented its reputation as the strongest team in overtime this season. The Kings now have five wins and just one loss after a tie in regular time. Only Chicago has more wins - seven, but the Bulls also have three losses.
Mike Brown's team is sixth in the Western Conference with 39 wins and 28 losses, while Memphis is 13th with a 23-46 record.
Indiana Pacers - Cleveland Cavaliers 103:108
Philadelphia 76ers - Miami Heat 98:91
Boston Celtics - Detroit Pistons 119:94
Chicago Bulls - Portland Trail Blazers 110:107
Utah Jazz - Minnesota Timberwolves 104:114
Golden State Warriors - New York Knicks 112:119
LA Lakers Atlanta Hawks 136:105. /BGNES
