SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Domantas Sabonis scored 27 points and Sacramento shot 15 times from the field to beat Houston 120-111 on Tuesday night and deny the Rockets the No. 1 seed in the NBA Cup quarterfinals.

The Kings’ shooting turned an eight-point deficit late in the second quarter into a 12-point lead midway through the third quarter, giving the Kings their only win in four NBA Cup games.

De’Aaron Fox added 22 points, Malik Monk had 17 points and 12 assists, the highest of his career, and DeMar DeRozan scored 16.

The Rockets won their first three games in the NBA Cup and could have secured first place in the West with a victory over the Kings. Houston hosts Golden State in the quarterfinals.

Jalen Green scored 28 points to lead Houston, and Alperen Sengun added 24 points.

Takeaways

Rockets: Houston had won three straight games and 10 of 12 games before pulling off a dud against Sacramento. The frustration led to coach Ime Udoka and Sengun being sent off late in the fourth quarter.

Kings: Sacramento found its shooting prowess after hitting less than 40% of its 3-point attempts in six straight games. The Kings finished sixth-worst in the NBA at 33.2% from 3-point range, but went 14 for 30 against Houston.

Key moment

The Kings’ shooting run began shortly after a heated moment between the teams following a hard foul by Fox on Jabari Smith Jr. There were three technical errors, with Monk getting one for Sacramento and Smith and Dillon Brooks getting one for Houston.

Key statistics

The Kings went through nearly nine minutes of play without missing a shot from the field. Sabonis and Fox each made four, DeRozan and Keegan Murray made three and Monk made one.

Next

The Rockets play at Golden State on Thursday night. The Kings travel to face Memphis.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA