DeMar DeRozan etched his name in history, but the Kings succumbed to the Pelicans' relentless offense, marking their 50th season loss.
The Sacramento Kings walked out of the Golden 1 Center on Thursday night with a 133-123 defeat at the hands of Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy III and the New Orleans Pelicans.
Sacramento dropped their third straight contest and fell to 14-50 on the season in another installment of the ongoing tank war between the two franchises.
Outside of tanking, this night was meaningful for the Kings due to DeMar DeRozan's amazing feat.
With a score at the 2:10 mark of the first quarter, the 17-year veteran passed 4-time NBA champion Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry on the all-time scoring list, securing his 26,448th point and moving into the No. 19 spot right behind San Antonio Spurs legend and Hall of Famer Tim Duncan.
Precious Achiuwa kept the Kings within striking distance for the majority of the night. He'd score a hyper-efficient, game-high 29 points with 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks and a steal in just under 41 minutes of burn, imposing himself physically all game long.
Russell Westbrook (19 points, 10 assists) and Drew Eubanks (15 points, 11 rebounds) both walked away with double-doubles of their own to support Achiuwa, but the Pels' collective mix of athleticism and spot-up shooting were too much to handle.
New Orleans' 2-time All-Star Williamson ended his night with a hard-earned 23 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists, while Murphy III connected on 4 of his 6 attempts from deep en route to 21 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
Saddiq Bey also scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half to hold off Sacramento.
The Kings' star sixth man Malik Monk joined Eubanks as a helpful reserve in this one, scoring 18 points in 30 minutes.
Both teams dominated in the painted area, with the Kings narrowly winning the points-in-the-paint battle 72-68. Unfortunately, New Orleans' 11 blocked shots as a team were the difference, as Sacramento's rim-runs were stifled in massive moments. Yves Missi led the way with 4 rejections.
Sacramento came out firing, leading after the first quarter 30-26. New Orleans then responded with a 41-point second frame to take a 67-63 halftime advantage, but the third quarter is when the game started to slip away.
After regaining an 81-80 lead with 5:55 left in the third, a barrage of hits from three-point range from Bey and several emphatic slams resulted in a 15-0 Pelicans run.
A few finishing touches around the rim from Williamson and a dagger from long distance by Murphy III with 1:49 left to give the Pelicans a 129-116 lead effectively ended the game, though Achiuwa and Eubanks did what they could to pull Sacramento back within single-digits at different points of the final frame.
Now with 50 losses on the season to 14 victories, the Kings are set to host the Chicago Bulls on Monday night.