LeBron James leads Lakers over Kings with clutch 4th quarter

Jan. 5 (UPI) — LeBron James scored 14 of his game-high 31 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a win over the Sacramento Kings.

James also recorded five rebounds and five assists in the 122-114 win Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The victory extended the Lakers’ winning streak to three-consecutive games.

“We won the game because we did not turn the ball over,” James told reporters. “When we get shots at the goal, we can be very dangerous. We weren’t shooting the ball well at all. Because we didn’t turn it over, we caught fire [later in the game].”

Lakers guard Russell Westbrook chipped in 19 points and logged his first zero turnover game since the 2015-16 season. Lakers forward Malik Monk scored 24 points and made six 3-pointers.

The game featured 23 lead changes and was tied 12 times. The Lakers outscored the Kings 62-46 in the paint. They also totaled 24 assists and just five total turnovers. The Kings totaled 18 giveaways in the loss.

“I don’t know if that’s realistic [to do all the time, but it shows we can do it if we put our mind to it as a team,” Westbrook said of the Lakers’ low turnover total.

The Kings started the game on a 9-2 run, but the Lakers responded with their own 9-2 run to tie the score. The Kings put together another 9-2 run to regain the lead and led 31-26 to start the second quarter.

The Lakers scored the first nine points of the second and led for most of the quarter. Guard De’Aaron Fox made a jump shot at the end of the frame to give the Kings a 59-57 halftime advantage.

The Kings and Lakers exchanged the lead several times to start the third. The Lakers ended the frame on an 8-2 run to take an 85-83 lead into the fourth.

The Kings built a 96-89 lead through the first four minutes of the quarter. James and Monk then sparked a late rally to for a 112-110 lead with 2:50 remaining and the Lakers never trailed again.

James was 12 of 26 from the field and made 6 of 10 shots in the fourth quarter. He also made two 3-pointers down the stretch. Monk made 3 of 3 3-point attempts over the final 12 minutes.

Fox scored a team-high 30 points for the Kings. Buddy Hield scored 26 points off the Kings bench.

The Kings (18-23) host the Atlanta Hawks (16-20) at 10 p.m. EST Wednesday at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. The Lakers (20-19) host the Hawks at 10 p.m. EST Friday at Crypto.com Arena.