SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Kevin Durant scored 28 points, Jusuf Nurkic made a late free throw and the Phoenix Suns rallied to beat the Sacramento Kings 108-107 on Friday night.
With the game tied at 107 after Phoenix overcame a 16-point deficit, Domantas Sabonis fouled Nurkic fighting for the rebound off a missed shot by the Suns' Grayson Allen. Nurkic, who finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds, missed the first, but made the second to give the Suns the lead with 8.1 seconds to play.
Bradley Beal then stripped De’Aaron Fox as Fox attempted to pull up for a potential winning shot on the other end.
Devin Booker added 21 for Phoenix, and Beal had 20. Sabonis had 25 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists for the Kings.
The teams are both headed to the postseason, but the game had major implications for seeding with the Suns seventh and Kings eighth in the West.
The Suns have won nine of their last 13 games, entering the day a game back of sixth-place New Orleans for the final automatic playoff spot. With one game left in the season, Phoenix owns the tiebreaker if the teams finish with the same record.
The Kings have dropped five of six, and can finish no higher than eighth. With the Los Angeles Lakers winning Friday, Sacramento is in danger of falling to the ninth or 10th seed, which would force the Kings to win two play-in games to advance to the full postseason.
The Kings led 54-45 at halftime. Keegan Murray scored 12 points in the second quarter, as Sacramento went on a 9-0 spurt.
UP NEXT
Suns: At Minnesota on Sunday to finish the regular season.
Kings: Host Portland on Sunday to finish the regular season.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
Arizona sports
The city of Phoenix is home to five major professional sports league teams; The NFL's Arizona Cardinals, NBA's Phoenix Suns, WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, MLB's Arizona Diamondbacks and NHL's Arizona Coyotes.
The Cardinals have made State Farm Stadium in Glendale their home turf and the Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix is home to both the Suns and the Mercury. The Indoor Football League’s Arizona Rattlers play at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale. The Coyotes play at Mullett Arena on ASU's Tempe campus.
Phoenix also has a soccer team with the USL's Phoenix Rising FC, who play at Phoenix Rising FC Stadium in Phoenix.
The Valley hosts multiple major sporting events on a yearly basis, including college football's Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl; the PGA Tour’s highest-attended event, the WM Phoenix Open; NASCAR events each spring and fall, including Championship Weekend in November; and Cactus League Spring Training for 15 Major League Baseball franchises.
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