1st Quarter Report
Only three more quarters stand between the Kings and the win they were favored to collect coming into this evening. They have a bit of a cushion as they currently lead the Grizzlies 46-32.
The Kings came into the matchup with some extra motivation after the defeat they were dealt the last time these two teams faced off. We’ll see if they’re able to flip the script or if it’ll just be more of the same.
Who’s Playing
Memphis Grizzlies @ Sacramento Kings
Current Records: Memphis 23-11, Sacramento 15-19
How To Watch
- When: Friday, January 3, 2025 at 10 p.m. ET
- Where: Golden 1 Center — Sacramento, California
- TV: Fand Duel SN – Memphis
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $44.00
What to Know
The Grizzlies and the Kings are an even 5-5 against one another since December of 2021, but not for long. The Memphis Grizzlies will be staying on the road on Friday to face off against the Sacramento Kings at 10:00 p.m. ET at Golden 1 Center. The Grizzlies pulled off an upset win in their last outing, and are hoping to pull that off once more against the 3.5-point favorite Kings.
The Grizzlies’ season wasn’t pretty last year but it’s starting to look like struggles are in the rearview. They managed a 117-112 victory over the Suns on Tuesday.
The Grizzlies’ win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jaren Jackson Jr., who dropped a double-double on 38 points and ten rebounds. Jackson Jr. had some trouble finding his footing against the Thunder on Sunday, so this was a nice turnaround. The team also got some help courtesy of Luke Kennard, who went 5 for 8 en route to 17 points plus seven rebounds and two steals.
Meanwhile, the Kings hadn’t done well against the 76ers recently (they were 1-9 in their previous ten matchups), but they didn’t let the past get in their way on Wednesday. The Kings snuck past the 76ers with a 113-107 victory. Sacramento was down 51-37 with 5:59 left in the second quarter but they still came back for the handy six-point win.
Among those leading the charge was De’Aaron Fox, who went 13 for 16 en route to 35 points. His evening made it four games in a row in which he has scored at least 30 points. Malik Monk, on the other hand, was considerably less helpful: he went 0-5 from downtown.
The Kings smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they’ve now pulled down at least 13 offensive rebounds in three consecutive matchups.
Memphis is on a roll lately: they’ve won 15 of their last 19 games, which provided a nice bump to their 23-11 record this season. As for Sacramento, their victory bumped their record up to 15-19.
The Grizzlies didn’t have too much breathing room in their contest against the Kings when the teams last played back in December of 2024, but they still walked away with a 115-110 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Grizzlies since the squad won’t have the home-court advantage this time around. We’ll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Odds
Sacramento is a 3.5-point favorite against Memphis, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Kings as a 4.5-point favorite.
The over/under is 238.5 points.
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Series History
Sacramento and Memphis both have 5 wins in their last 10 games.
- Dec 05, 2024 – Memphis 115 vs. Sacramento 110
- Mar 18, 2024 – Sacramento 121 vs. Memphis 111
- Jan 29, 2024 – Sacramento 103 vs. Memphis 94
- Dec 31, 2023 – Sacramento 123 vs. Memphis 92
- Jan 23, 2023 – Sacramento 133 vs. Memphis 100
- Jan 01, 2023 – Memphis 118 vs. Sacramento 108
- Nov 22, 2022 – Sacramento 113 vs. Memphis 109
- Oct 27, 2022 – Memphis 125 vs. Sacramento 110
- Dec 26, 2021 – Memphis 127 vs. Sacramento 102
- Dec 17, 2021 – Memphis 124 vs. Sacramento 105
