The Sacramento Kings needed a spark heading into Sunday’s game against the San Antonio Spurs after losing five of their last six games. Starting Malik Monk for the first time in his Sacramento tenure was a surefire way to come out of the gates with flying colors, but that heat didn’t last long.

The Kings outscored the Spurs 42 to 28 in the first quarter, but dropped seven points in each of the second and fourth quarters. Despite having two of the NBA’s best clutch-time players in De’Aaron Fox and DeMar DeRozan, the Kings have struggled to finish games lately.

Sacramento had a lead of as many as 17 points but couldn’t stop the Spurs as they mounted their comeback.

Spurs superstar center Victor Wembanyama was the highlight of the night, recording his first triple-double of the season and the third of his career. Wemby posted 34 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists and 3 blocks, a standout performance that included the game-winning offensive rebound over Kings center Domantas Sabonis.

The Spurs shot 23-46 (50%) from three-point range on Sunday night, compared to 12-32 (37.5%) in Sacramento. The Kings beat or tied the Spurs in almost every major statistical category, but simply couldn’t stop the Spurs from hitting their shots.

Sunday’s two-point loss to San Antonio is simply brutal, as the Kings have now lost six of their last seven, dropping their season record to 9-12. Sacramento’s next chance to get back in the win column is Tuesday against the Houston Rockets.

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