Russell Westbrook scored 25 points, Precious Achiuwa added 22 points and 12 rebounds and DeMar DeRozan finished with 19 to lead the Sacramento Kings to a 123-114 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday night to snap a franchise-record 16-game losing streak.
The Kings, who won on the road for only the fourth time in 30 games, won for the first time since Jan. 16.
Daeqwon Plowden contributed 19 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter, for the Kings as Maxime Raynaud had 10 points and a game-high 13 boards.
The Grizzlies, who lost for the sixth time in seven games, got 21 points, six rebounds and nine assists from Javon Small, 17 points from Olivier-Maxence Prosper and 16 points from GG Jackson. Memphis, short-handed and undersized because of injuries, was outrebounded 45-37 and yielded 13 offensive rebounds. Achiuwa had seven offensive boards.
Grizzlies star guard Ja Morant missed his 14th straight game because of an elbow injury and rookie Cedric Coward was out because of a knee injury. Memphis started a different lineup for the 11th straight game.
Sacramento pulled away early in the fourth quarter. Ahead 94-91, the Kings put together a 10-0 run during a 60-second span. Plowden started the run with a four-point play as he was fouled on his 3-point make. Malik Monk followed with a three-point play and Westbrook completed the run with a 3-pointer with 8:45 remaining.
Memphis was able to trim the margin to single digits briefly, cutting the deficit to seven points at 108-101 following a three-point play by Small. The Kings quickly recovered behind consecutive 3-pointers, two from Plowden and another by Westbrook.
Both teams shot 54.2% in the first half, but Sacramento led 63-61 at the break. The Kings outrebounded the Grizzlies 26-14 in the opening half, grabbing 10 offensive boards. Achiuwa had a double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds) at halftime.
Vassell leads Spurs to take down of East-leading Pistons
Devin Vassell poured in 28 points, including seven 3-pointers, and the visiting San Antonio Spurs stretched their winning streak to nine games by cooling off the Detroit Pistons, 114-103, on Monday.
Victor Wembanyama supplied 21 points, 17 rebounds, six blocks and four assists in the matchup between the Western Conference’s second-place team and the Eastern Conference leaders.
Julian Champagnie had 17 points and Stephon Castle contributed 16 points and 11 assists. De’Aaron Fox added 10 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
Jalen Duren led the Pistons with 25 points and 14 rebounds. All-Star Cade Cunningham had 16 points and 10 assists but made just 5 of 26 field-goal attempts.
Ronald Holland had 15 points and 11 rebounds off the bench, while Duncan Robinson tossed in 13 points. Paul Reed chipped in 10 points.
The Pistons, who had won five straight, were held to 37.7% shooting, including a 7-for-36 success rate on 3-point attempts (19.4%).
Vassell fired in a trio of 3-pointers before the game was two minutes old. San Antonio was up 12 points after three minutes, but Detroit quickly recovered and led 27-24 when the first quarter ended.
San Antonio led 57-55 at the break. Vassell finished the half with 18 points and Champagnie had 12. Holland led the Pistons with 11 points.
A 13-2 run midway through the third quarter gave the Spurs a 74-64 lead. Castle scored eight points during that span, capping it off with a three-point play. San Antonio carried an 83-75 lead into the fourth.