Tyreke Evans scores 26 points, Grizzlies beat Kings 114-96
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Tyreke Evans had 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists against his former team and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Sacramento Kings 114-96 on Sunday.
Evans shot 10 of 16 and had five 3-pointers. He spent two stints with Sacramento and was most recently with the team in 2016.
Jarell Martin added 11 points and three others had 10 points apiece on a day all 13 players scored for the Grizzlies.
One day after setting a season high for scoring in a 141-128 loss to the Golden State Warriors, Memphis had another big offensive game in a blowout of stumbling Sacramento.
The Grizzlies scored 35 points in the first quarter and led by 14 or more at the end of every quarter. Wayne Selden punctuated the win with a dunk that put Memphis up 104-71 with 7:25 remaining.
The Kings trailed by as many as 33 and missed 11 of 24 free throws and trailed for the final 43 minutes.
It's the second consecutive year that the two teams played on New Year's Eve. The Grizzlies won both.
Evans wasn't the only player facing his former team.
Zach Randolph, a two-time All-Star over eight seasons who helped Memphis reach the 2013 Western Conference finals before signing with Sacramento in the offseason, had four points and six rebounds. Randolph spent most of the game going against longtime teammate Marc Gasol.
Willie Cauley-Stein had 21 points and eight rebounds for the Kings. Buddy Hield added 15 points, and Garrett Temple had 13.
Mario Chalmers made a pair of 3-pointers and had eight points in five minutes during Memphis' 36-point first quarter and was involved in a strange sequence of events at the end of the period.
Frank Mason attempted a halfcourt shot at the buzzer and missed while being defended by Chalmers. After officials reviewed the play Mason, who was upset over not the call from the refs, was charged with a technical and Chalmers was called for a foul.
The Grizzlies led by 24 before a late Sacramento surge cut the gap to 64-46 at halftime.
TIP-INS
Grizzlies: Gasol was called for a technical foul in the fourth quarter after arguing with an official. ... Memphis shot 60 percent (12 of 20) in the first quarter.
Kings: Mason limped off the court with a bruised left heel after making two of three free throws on the foul by Chalmers. Mason, who appeared to get hurt a few plays earlier, did not return.
UP NEXT
Grizzlies: At Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night.
Kings: Host Charlotte on Tuesday night.