Philippines, 31 Mar 2026
  Home >> News

 


BOXERS

CURRENT CHAMPIONS 

FORMER CHAMPIONS   

RATINGS                       

NEWS           

FORUM        

FIGHT GALLERIES        

RING CARD GIRLS        


 
 
News  


Leonard, Spurs Steal One from Sacramento


PhilBoxing.com




Sacramento, California - The score was 68-66 with the Kings on top midway through the third quarter. Sacramento has been controlling the game right from the start to that point with the ball in their possession. Then Kawhi Leonard literally grabbed the ball away from Ben McLemore and drove all the way to the basket for an 'and-one'. In the ensuing play, the reigning back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awardee ripped the ball again from McLemore for another fastbreak finish. Leonard was once again superb all around with a team high 30 points to go along with 3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 steals to lead the Spurs to a come-from-behind 102-94 victory over the Sacramento Kings at the brand new Golden1 Center in downtown Sacramento.

"He took two away in a row and said, `Gimme that.' He just grabbed it away from whoever it was," Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich said. "He just grabbed it and took it twice in a row. I don't see many people doing that."

The San Antonio Spurs stay undefeated barely two days after they clobbered the Golden State on the Warriors' home floor on opening night. The Sacramento Kings are now 1-1. Both teams were shooting in the low 30s from beyond the arc with only six makes apiece. The Spurs swatted 8 shots, while no Kings player recorded a blocked shot. Gregg Popovich's wards also took better care of the ball with only 9 turnovers, while Dave Joerger's Kings turned the ball over 15 times.

Kings big man Demarcus Cousins led all scorers with 37 points on 10 for 22 field goal shooting and made 14 of 16 shots from the charity stripe. He also made 3 of his 5 attempts from the rainbow territory... but his efforts were not enough to stop the balanced attack of the Spurs, who had 8 players with at least 5 points to his name.

For the second consecutive game, the Spurs bench asserted its dominance over its counterparts. San Antonio's shock troopers tallied 43 points, while Sacramento could only muster 18 from its second unit.

Sacramento was leading 9 points midway through the third quarter when Leonard and company engineered a 16-2 run, holding the Kings without a field goal in the final 7:20 of the third frame. The Spurs then built a 10-point lead early in the fourth when the Kings went on a 12-2 run led by Cousins and Arron Afflalo to tie the game. But the Spurs kept pounding the rock, commenced by a cold-blooded fade away jumper by LaMarcus Aldridge to silence the raucous crowd.

Kawhi Leonard had 5 steals, just like he did versus Golden State. Sacramento had this one for the most part... until the Spurs decided to steal it away from them for good.

Photo: The brand new Golden1 Center in downtown Sacramento.

Comments are highly appreciated. You may email them to reylanloberternos@yahoo.com.ph and you may follow me on twitter @reylan_l


Click here to view a list of other articles written by Reylan Loberternos.


Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:

  • ZAYAS AND BOOTS CLASH IN UNIFIED BLOCKBUSTER AT BARCLAYS CENTER, BROOKLYN ON JUNE 27 – LIVE AND EXCLUSIVE ON DAZN PPV
    , Tue, 31 Mar 2026
  • Manny Pacquiao Promotions Announces Full Card to Join Taduran Vs. Perez on Friday, April 3, at Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, Calif. Live on ESPN Knockout
    , Tue, 31 Mar 2026
  • 13-0 prospect Marco Romero hasn’t lost a Fight in nearly 7 years and he’s only 20
    , Tue, 31 Mar 2026
  • WORLD ELITE SUMO ANNOUNCES NEW DATE – SATURDAY, MAY 16 – FOR LIVE PROFESSIONAL SUMO EVENT AT PRUDENTIAL CENTER
    , Tue, 31 Mar 2026
  • Filipino boy, 15, wins US chess meet
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Tue, 31 Mar 2026
  • 60 Years of Top Rank: Bob Arum’s First Fight Launched a Boxing Empire
    , Mon, 30 Mar 2026
  • Lebron James and son Bronny make NBA History
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Mon, 30 Mar 2026
  • Bryan Acosta Wins WBA Continental Americas Featherweight Championship with Unanimous Decision over Ronny Rios in Main Event of ProBoxTV from Thunder Studios in Long Beach
    , Sun, 29 Mar 2026
  • Filipino boy, 9, wins in Canada chess meet
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Sun, 29 Mar 2026
  • Vagabov and Ziyaev crowned champions at IBA Bare Knuckle 4 in Saint Petersburg
    , Sun, 29 Mar 2026
  • Sherwin Tiu captures Kamatyas Open Chess crown
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Sun, 29 Mar 2026
  • Fundora vs Thurman: Can Keith Thurman Shake Off The Rust?
    By Chris Carlson, , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • Albert Ramirez Against Lerrone Richards for the WBA Interim Light Heavyweight World Title on June 4 in Montreal!
    , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • GM Daniel Quizon is the Favorite in 19th Kamatyas
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • Weights From ‘Acosta vs. Rios’ Event from Thunder Studios in Long Beach, Calif., and Broadcast live on ProBoxTV
    , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • Mauricio Sulaiman: WBC maintains priority of the defense of fighters
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • Barrière and Akdeniz win in Montreal
    By Eric Armit, , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • Jesse Espinas and Leboy Atencio Ready to Rumble in Thailand, LIVE on TrillerTV (Weigh-in Photos)
    By Carlos Costa, , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • Matchroom Boxing announces new long-term contract extensions for two top UK fighters
    , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • Thananchai Decisions "Lucky Boy" Alicaba
    By Carlos Costa, , Sat, 28 Mar 2026
  • Suslenkov to defend WBA continental title against Mann at IBA.PRO 16 in Serpukhov
    , Fri, 27 Mar 2026
  • SBA Builds the Future of Billiards with SBA Next and Official Pool Hub Network
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Fri, 27 Mar 2026
  • Don King Productions Announces Challenger for Reigning WBC Cruiserweight World Champion Noel Mikaelian
    , Fri, 27 Mar 2026
  • 11-0 Brooklyn heavyweight prospect Pryce Taylor developing his skills at Deontay Wilder and Andrii Novytskyi
    , Fri, 27 Mar 2026
  • IBA welcomes the victory of common sense in the IOC policy on protecting women
    , Fri, 27 Mar 2026




  •  



     
    PhilBoxing.com has been created to support every aspiring
    Filipino boxer and the Philippine boxing scene in general.
    Please send comments to feedback@philboxing.com


    PRIVATE POLICY | LEGAL DISCLAIMER
    developed and maintained by dong secuya
    © 2026 philboxing.com.