\u2014 Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) October 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Kings vs. Jazz recap & takeaways<\/p>\n After a sluggish start that included falling into an immediate six-point hole, Sacramento bounced back thanks to a red-hot start from Zach LaVine.<\/p>\n LaVine, who scored 30 points on 13-of-24 shooting from the field during Wednesday\u2019s season-opening loss in Phoenix, scored 15 points on five-of-eight shooting (two-of-four from three-point range) over just seven minutes in the first quarter to ignite the Kings\u2019 offense.<\/p>\n Ball movement was crisp early, as Sacramento handed out nine assists on the first 11 made baskets to take control heading into the second quarter.<\/p>\n After shooting 55 percent from the field and 50 percent from deep during the first quarter, the Kings\u2019 offense struggled in the second, allowing Utah to stop the bleeding and keep things close. Sacramento shot just 32 percent from the field in the second, while LaVine went scoreless in the period.<\/p>\n The Sacramento Kings\u2019 offense still appears to be a work in progress, as the ball-movement from the first quarter disappeared in the second (two assists and three turnovers). Still, Sacramento took a three-point lead into the second half as they looked to secure their first win of the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n Malik on one end \u27a1\ufe0f Zach on the other pic.twitter.com\/FnD7Xd8ii2<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n After going scoreless in the second quarter, LaVine got involved in the offense again as play entered the second half.<\/p>\n A sputtering Kings offense leaned on the star guard as LaVine scored nine points in the period to help Sacramento re-establish a lead, with Malik Monk continuing his strong start following Wednesday\u2019s 19-point outing in Phoenix by scoring nine points of his own in the third to aid his teammate.<\/p>\n Monk and Russell Westbrook brought energy off the bench to breathe life into the Kings\u2019 offense, with Monk\u2019s buzzer-beating, step-back triple sending a packed crowd into a frenzy as Sacramento took a two-point lead into the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n While Utah\u2019s three-point shooting was abysmal for the majority of the night, things shifted the other direction during the second half for the Jazz.<\/p>\n After going six-for-21 (28%) from downtown during the first half, Utah opened up the fourth quarter by knocking down three of its first six attempts to keep Sacramento close.<\/p>\n All-Star big Lauri Markkanen was a problem for an undersized Kings defense, and while he punished the Kings\u2019 interior defense, supporting cast members Kyle Filipowski, Bryce Sensabaugh, and rookie Walter Clayton Jr. applied pressure from the perimeter to regain the lead with less than eight minutes to go.<\/p>\n LaVine, Westbrook, and Dennis Schroder all had big plays in crunch time, but Utah wouldn\u2019t go away.<\/p>\n Westbrook\u2019s foul on Markkanen with 28.1 to go allowed the Jazz to take a 104-103 lead, but Sacramento would answer in thrilling fashion as Domantas Sabonis corralled his own miss and went back up to give the Kings a one-point lead with 5.2 seconds remaining.<\/p>\n DOMANTAS SABONIS AND-1 FOR THE LEAD \ud83e\udd2f pic.twitter.com\/Fc7d15nH9D<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Sabonis missed his and-one free-throw, giving Utah a chance to win on the final possession. Schroder did a solid job contesting Utah guard Keyonte George\u2019s game-winning attempt, and the shot missed everything as Golden 1 Center erupted simultaneously as the final horn sounded.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t pretty, but a gritty finish that culminated with timely baskets and stops on the defensive end gave Sacramento its first Beam of the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n The Kings were able to hold off a late push from the Jazz offense, as Utah went five-of-12 (41%) from three-point range in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n Although the Jazz found the bottom of the net from deep, a collective effort from a closing lineup that included Westbrook, Sabonis, Schroder, LaVine, and Monk got the job done.<\/p>\n Sacramento\u2019s defense forced 19 turnovers on Friday, scoring 15 points off those turnovers.<\/p>\n The Kings also won the battle of the bench, with Monk (20 points), Westbrook (seven points), and Keon Ellis (five points) making a difference in that category.<\/p>\n As good as Monk and the bench were against Utah, LaVine is arguably the most impressive aspect of Sacramento\u2019s first two games. The star guard scored 31 points in an encore performance from a 30-point effort in Wednesday\u2019s season-opener.<\/p>\n Zach to the RACK \ud83d\ude24 pic.twitter.com\/oUjvxJHTYc<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n LaVine finished the night with an efficient 10-of-18 showing from the field (four-of-nine from three-point range), adding seven of those points in the final period.<\/p>\n With De\u2019Aaron Fox\u2013Sacramento\u2019s longtime leading scorer for most of the past decade\u2013gone, the Kings are in need of someone to step up and be penciled in for 25-plus points a night. LaVine fits that bill with his ability to get hot from the perimeter and knock down tough, contested looks in the midrange.<\/p>\n Back-to-back 30-point efforts are quite a way to start the season for LaVine, who has picked up right where he left off at the end of last season when he averaged 22.4 points per game on 51\/44\/87 shooting splits over 32 games with Sacramento.<\/p>\n Sabonis Makes His Debut<\/p>\n While he was originally scheduled to be re-evaluated on Saturday, Domantas Sabonis (hamstring strain) made his season debut on Friday night.<\/p>\n Sabonis, who is known for playing through injuries, sat during Wednesday\u2019s season-opening loss in Phoenix. After missing just one game, the three-time defending NBA rebound champion logged a practice session on Thursday before being cleared to return to the hardwood against Utah.<\/p>\n Sabonis throws it down AGAIN \ud83d\udd28 pic.twitter.com\/5zinkskw6I<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n The double-double machine continued his multi-tasking ways on Friday, scoring 12 points (including the game-winner) and grabbing 12 boards over 36 minutes of action.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t say enough about what Domas brings,\u201d head coach Doug Christie said postgame of his center. \u201cReally excited to see the big fella back in the building.\u201d<\/p>\n Westbrook Lights The Beam<\/p>\n Russell Westbrook is already on his way to becoming a fan-favorite among Sacramento Kings fans.<\/p>\n Westbrook, who made his home debut on Friday, was a sparkplug during the win, scoring seven points and handing out four assists to go along with one steal over 17 minutes.<\/p>\n The future Hall of Famer was tasked with defending the seven-footer Markkanen at times, and his hustle plays didn\u2019t go unnoticed\u2013especially his triple in the fourth quarter that kept Utah from expanding on a four-point lead with less than five minutes to go.<\/p>\n Westbrook told reporters after the game that until joining Sacramento last week, he hadn\u2019t played five-on-five since May, when he was playing for Denver in the NBA Playoffs.<\/p>\n Following the game, Westbrook made his way over to the scorer\u2019s table, where he lit the first beam of the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n \u201cBeen looking forward to doing that since I\u2019ve been here,\u201d Westbrook said of the beam lighting.<\/p>\n Russell Westbrook lights the first beam of the 25-26 Sacramento Kings season. pic.twitter.com\/7PgxqrpSCi<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) October 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Quick Hits<\/p>\n Sacramento was outrebounded 50-33 on Friday. The Kings were out-rebounded 51-37 against Phoenix. Sacramento Kings Injury Report<\/p>\n Keegan Murray (left thumb surgery recovery) is still three to five weeks from being re-evaluated.<\/p>\n Nique Clifford (right hamstring strain) will be re-evaluated in one week.<\/p>\n When is the next Sacramento Kings game?<\/p>\n The Sacramento Kings will conclude its brief two-game home stand on Sunday afternoon when it faces Luka Doncic and the LeBron James-less Los Angeles Lakers at Golden 1 Center.<\/p>\n Be sure to catch all of the Kings vs. Lakers action right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage beginning at 4:30 PM PT on Game Night\u00a0before a 6:00 pm PT tip-off from downtown Sacramento.<\/p>\n Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season<\/p>\n Sunday, October 26th\u00a0\u2013 vs. Los Angeles Lakers \u2013 6 PM PT Thank you for reading\u00a0SactownSports.com<\/a>. Follow us on\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Google News<\/a>, and subscribe to our\u00a0YouTube<\/a>\u00a0channel.<\/p>\n
\nThe Jazz beat the Kings in paint scoring (48-36), fast break points (15-6), and second chance points (12-9), but still lost.
\nDennis Schroder added 17 points on 8\/16 shooting to go along with five rebounds and two steals over 33 minutes.<\/p>\n
\nTuesday, October 28th\u00a0\u2013 @ Oklahoma City Thunder \u2013 5 PM PT
\nWednesday, October 29th\u00a0\u2013 @ Chicago Bulls \u2013 5 PM PT
\nSaturday, November 1st\u00a0\u2013 @ Milwaukee Bucks \u2013 2:00 PM PT
\nMonday, November 3rd \u2013 @ Denver Nuggets \u2013 6:00 PM PT<\/p>\n
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