Kings' Murray drops 47, hits record 11 straight 3s
Keegan Murray made 12 3-pointers, including an NBA-record 11 straight, and scored a career-high 47 points to lead the Sacramento Kings to a 125-104 victory over the Utah Jazz on Saturday night.
The 12 3s were two shy of the league mark for most in a game, set by Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson in 2018.
Murray scored a franchise-best 26 points in the third quarter and had Thompson’s record in his sights after making 12 of his first 13 attempts. But the second-year forward missed his final two shots from behind the arc while becoming the seventh player to make a dozen or more 3s in a game.
“I thought Keegan was playing the right way,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “There was nothing really forced. Our guys didn’t really force anything to him. They just hit him when he was open.”
Sacramento forward Domantas Sabonis added 20 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists to register his seventh straight double-double and 20th this season.
The Kings shot 22-of-45 from the 3-point line, the third time this season Sacramento made at least 20 treys.
Collin Sexton scored 28 points and Lauri Markkanen added 18 for the Jazz.
Sacramento took control of the game in the third quarter, outscoring the Jazz 44-26. Murray broke the franchise record of 25 points in a quarter, set by Mitch Richmond in the fourth period against the Houston Rockets on Dec. 15, 1995.
“It kind of reminded me of my last year in college,” said Murray, the fourth pick in the 2022 NBA draft out of Iowa. “I’d get hot and I would just black out for a little bit, and so everything would just go in. That’s kind of what happened in the third quarter.”
The Kings took their biggest lead of the game, 106-76, after Murray hit his 12th 3-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer.
“Keegan never let us off the hook,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “Every time you make a mistake, he makes the shot. The percentages will tell you, you know, that’s not necessarily realistic either, but it was one of those nights. And he’s obviously a very good young player, and hats off to him.”
Murray scored 19 points in the first half, as Sacramento led 62-50 going into the intermission.
“He’s just barely scratching the surface because he’s been asked to do something that he’s never been asked to do at the highest level,” Brown said. “With his work ethic, his determination, his skill set and all that other stuff, he’s gotten a chance to be a high-level player in a lot of different areas. Everybody’s just seeing a little bit of it now, so there’s a ton of room to grow, for sure.”
Sacramento starting point guard De’Aaron Fox was out due to right shoulder irritation. Utah guard Jordan Clarkson missed his third straight game because of a right hamstring strain, and John Collins missed his fourth consecutive contest with an illness.
ESPN Stats & Information and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
