Pelicans at Kings
The Sacramento Kings energized their home fans with an exciting brand of basketball amid the team's best season in 13 years. They get one more chance to play in front of the hometown crowd when they host the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday in the finale at Golden 1 Center.
Sacramento recently saw its playoff aspirations disappear and its dream of a rare winning record went by the board with Friday's 119-98 loss at Utah, but it can still finish at .500 with victories in its final two games. "We're going to finish .500," guard Buddy Hield, who scored a team-high 17 points against the Jazz, told reporters. "It was just a bad one tonight." The Pelicans have endured many bad ones down the stretch and dropped their third straight with a 133-126 overtime setback at Phoenix on Friday. Superstar forward Anthony Davis (back) missed each of the last five games.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, FS New Orleans, NBCS California (Sacramento)
ABOUT THE PELICANS (32-48): Forward Julius Randle has taken advantage of Davis' injuries and playing time reductions, and continued his strong stretch run with 31 points and 14 rebounds at Phoenix. New Orleans scored 76 points in the first half but just 50 after the break, including the extra session, as the offense stagnated. "We played well in the first half, we had ball movement and did a good job," coach Alvin Gentry told reporters, "and then we decided we'd become an iso(lation) team and that's what we're not."
ABOUT THE KINGS (39-41): Both point guard De'Aaron Fox (foot) and center Kosta Koufos (calf) exited after the first half at Utah and did not return. Yogi Ferrell took advantage of an opportunity to fill in for Fox and finished with 13 points and five assists in 36 minutes -- his highest total since Jan. 22. Rookie Marvin Bagley III recorded 13 points and 12 rebounds for his fifth double-double in his last nine games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. New Orleans finishes the regular season Tuesday at home against Golden State. Sacramento visits Portland on Wednesday.
2. Pelicans PF Cheick Diallo had 12 points and 11 boards in just 23 minutes Friday.
3. The home team won each of the first three meetings this season after the road team took all four encounters in 2017-18.