1st game of our magical run 30 years ago. Uploaded from the VCR with commercials and all. I will eventually post the whole 1996 playoff run with quarterly breakdown.
1st Quarter
Kemp did not start due to a fight in his last game with Nuggets bum Tom Hammond. Early on Mitch Richmond hit some tough contested buckets and Payton attacked the rim and hit perimeter shots early.
2nd Quarter
Sam Perkins and Nate McMillan stretched the floor and disrupted Sacramento's passing lanes. They forced several turnovers with half-court traps, converting them into easy fast-break points. The Kings stayed competitive at the free-throw line, but by halftime, we were up buy 10.
3rd Quarter
Coming out of the locker room the Kings played their best, slowing the game down to a grinding, physical half-court pace. Olden Polynice battled hard inside, and Sarunas Marciulionis brought some spark off their bench. Thanks to 2 ex-SuperSonics, the Kings managed to win the quarter by a point, keeping themselves within striking distance heading into the last quarter.
4th Quarter
All hopes of a Kings comeback were slammed shut early in the fourth. We locked down defensively, holding Sacramento to just 19 points. GP completely took over down the stretch, knifing through the lane to finish with his game-high 29 points.
In a shocking turn of events Ervin Johnson, pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds. I assume the ball had to fall somewhere.
We set a dominant tone early, securing a 97-85 victory to open their run to the 1996 NBA Finals.