Buddy Hield's season-high 35 points helps Sacramento Kings halt Boston Celtics' 10-game win streak

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It went right down to the wire in Sacramento, with the Kings pulling off a thrilling 100-99 win to end the Boston Celtics' 10-game win streak.

Richaun Holmes buried a pair of free throws with 13.3 seconds remaining to give the Kings the lead as they survived a last-gasp floater from Marcus Smart which boggled on the rim, before bouncing out. 


Jayson Tatum scored six-straight points to give the Celtics a 93-88 lead with 3:48 remaining, before Bogdan Bogdanovic and Buddy Hield triggered an 8-2 run to give the Kings a late lead. Tatum and Hield then traded bucked down the stretch, before Daniel Theis' dunk put Boston up 99-98 with 52 seconds remaining. 

The back-and-forth thriller featured nine ties and 24 lead changes, but Holmes had the final say, icing the game at the line.

After starting the season 0-5, the Kings have now won five of their past seven games to get their season back on track.

Hield was instrumental for the Kings, scoring a season-high 35 points on 14-of-24 shooting, knocking down seven three-pointers on the night. Harrison Barnes added 13 points, while Nemanja Bjielica and Bogdanovic chipped in 12 points apiece. 

Boston were led by 18 points from Jaylen Brown, while Kemba Walker added 15 points and nine assists, with Tatum and Thies chipping in 14 each. 

Walker, who has been a driving force in the Celtics' hot start to the season, was unable to find his touch down the stretch, going scoreless in the fourth quarter as the Kings clamped down on the defensive end, much to the delight of head coach Luke Walton. 

“We needed stops,” Walton said per the Sacramento Bee. “We were playing from behind [by] two or three [points] and we set up scenarios like that in practice a lot. We’ll put one group in, down three with three minutes to go, so they need stops to even have a chance.”

The Celtics will look to bounce back in their next game against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday, while the Kings will take on the Suns the following day.

 

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Benyam Kidane is a senior NBA editor for The Sporting News.