PORTLAND _ The Sacramento Kings got pushed around on their home court the other night in a listless loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. This time, they pushed back.
The Kings needed a road win in the worst way Saturday night and they earned it with one of their finest performances, blasting the Portland Trail Blazers 123-111 before a stunned crowd at the Moda Center in Portland, Ore.
Bogdan Bogdanovic had 27 points, eight assists and five rebounds for the Kings (28-35), who moved a half-game ahead of the Blazers for ninth in the Western Conference playoff race. The Kings are now 3{ games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the eighth seed in the West.
The Kings caught the Blazers on the second night of a back-to-back after their starters logged heavy minutes in a road loss to the Phoenix Suns on Friday. The Kings capitalized, running out to a 19-point lead in the opening period.
"Really pleased with the mindset and the focus level of the group as a whole tonight," Kings coach Luke Walton said. "We knew that they were on the back end of a back-to- back and played big minutes last night, so we wanted to make it a point to keep ourselves coming in and out and push and push and push."
Buddy Hield came off the bench to score 22 points for Sacramento, which had lost 12 in a row in Portland dating back to Dec. 12, 2012. Hield made 6 of 9 from 3-point range.
Harrison Barnes scored 20 points. De'Aaron Fox had 14 points and 11 assists with only one turnover. Richaun Holmes returned after missing 25 games with a torn labrum, posting 10 points and eight rebounds in 19 minutes. Holmes was cleared to play before the game. Walton said he would come off the bench with a minutes restriction.
"Very excited (to be back)," Holmes said. "The team has been playing well. Got a chance to go back out there and get back in rhythm to try and help push the team to more wins. I don't take it lightly to be a part of a push like this. Very grateful and thank God to be a part of something like this. I'm looking forward to competing every night."
CJ McCollum scored 19 points for the Blazers (28-37). Hassan Whiteside had 19 points and 11 rebounds. Star point guard Damian Lillard was held to 12 points on 4-of-15 shooting, including 2-of-10 shooting from 3-point range.
"Tough loss," Lillard said. "A bad one, a bad one. That one hurt."
The Kings carried a 77-54 lead into the halftime break after setting a franchise record with nine 3-pointers in the second quarter. They led by as many as 26.
Tempers flared in the third quarter when Kings center Alex Len set a physical screen on McCollum while running a pick-and-roll play with Fox. McCollum pushed Len. Len pushed back. The two of them squared off. Players and officials managed to separate them before any punches were thrown, but both combatants were assessed offsetting technical fouls.
Len has provided an element of toughness sine the Kings acquired him from the Atlanta Hawks on the eve of the trade deadline. He previously had an altercation with Montrezl Harrell when the Kings beat the Los Angeles Clippers on Feb. 22.
"I think that's Alex's second scuffle already _ what you would call a fight in today's NBA," Walton said. "We love it. We don't want any fights. We don't want anyone to ever get hurt, but you need to play with an edge. The only to play with an edge is to have guys with that in their makeup. We've only had him for a short time, but he's definitely made us a more physical, tough team."
The Kings will return to Sacramento to play the Toronto Raptors on Sunday.
