Golden State Warriors started their preseason at Chase Center with a steady 111-106 win over the Sacramento Kings, built on efficient shooting and a firm grip on the defensive glass. In front of 18,064 fans, the hosts won the middle quarters, then managed the final minutes to keep the Kings at arm’s length. The stat sheet tells a clear story. Golden State shot 48% from the field to Sacramento’s 41% and finished with a 49-41 edge in rebounds. Sacramento forced 21 turnovers and swiped 15 steals, but could not turn that chaos into a lead in the fourth quarter. The Warriors led for 39:01 and never trailed in the final 12 minutes, even as the Kings won the fourth 25-22. On Sofascore, the box score backed up the eye test: Golden State’s two-point efficiency and defensive rebounding shaped the game.

Second-quarter surge, third-quarter control

The Kings took the first quarter 25-24, helped by a 7/9 start at the stripe and slightly better early field goal accuracy. Golden State still showed signs of control with a 14-10 rebounding edge, 3 made threes, and 7:40 spent in the lead. Sacramento’s 42% shooting versus 40% nudged them ahead at the horn, but the Warriors were already tilting the possession game.

The second quarter flipped the scoreboard and the momentum. Golden State went 14/22 from the field, including a blistering 13/17 on twos and 8/9 on free throws, to post 37 points. Sacramento kept pace from deep at 3/8, but 12/25 overall kept the door open. The hosts led 61-56 at halftime and had the ball moving with 10 assists in the period. A strong third followed, with the Warriors winning it 28-25 on the back of 5 made threes and a 15-11 rebounding edge. They spent 11:29 of the quarter in front and pushed the margin to 89-81. Sacramento’s best run of the night was 10 straight, but Golden State never let it snowball into a lead.

Shot selection and efficiency favored Golden State

Over 48 minutes, the Warriors were the more precise team at key ranges. They finished 38/79 from the floor at 48%, while the Kings needed 91 attempts to make the same 38 baskets. The biggest gap sat inside the arc, where Golden State went 26/44 on two-pointers at 59%. Sacramento shot 28/61 on twos for 45%, a number that kept their comeback chances limited to runs rather than a sustained push.

From three, the margins were slim but meaningful. Golden State made 12/35 triples at 34%, Sacramento 10/30 at 33%. Those extra two makes matter in a one-possession game late. Free throws were essentially a wash. The Warriors hit 23/29 at 79% and the Kings 20/25 at 80%, so the difference came from creating higher-quality looks rather than living at the line. For Golden State, Yaxel Lendeborg’s 10/14 shooting and Gui Santos’ 6/9 helped power that two-point edge. Brandon Williams added 7/8 with a perfect 2/2 from deep to keep the second unit humming. Sacramento had bright shooting pockets from Darius Acuff and Maxime Raynaud, but several rotation pieces struggled to find rhythm.

Rebounding, blocks and passing tilted the balance

The Warriors didn’t just shoot better, they protected their rim and their glass. Golden State finished with a 49-41 rebound advantage and dominated the defensive boards 39-28. That fourth-quarter number was decisive. The Warriors grabbed 10 defensive rebounds to the Kings’ 4, which denied the visitors the late extra possessions they needed. Sacramento did win the offensive glass 13-10, but it did not translate into a swing in the lead.

Ball movement also separated the sides. Golden State logged 26 assists to Sacramento’s 19, reflecting how often the Warriors turned drives into kick-outs and cuts into layups. The Kings won the steals battle 15-10 and pressured the ball all night, led by Jonathan Mogbo’s five thefts. That pressure fed 21 Golden State turnovers, including eight in the fourth quarter. Even then, the Warriors’ rim protection showed up with a 5-1 blocks edge and timely stops. In a preseason setting, those are the controllables coaches circle on film.

Standouts on a balanced Warriors sheet

Yaxel Lendeborg headlined the night with a standout all-around line. He posted 23 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists, adding 2 steals and 1 block with a game-best +18. Brandin Podziemski matched that impact at both ends with 14 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, also at +18. Draymond Green contributed in classic fashion with 3 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and a steal, finishing a perfect 1/1 from the field and +18 in 23 minutes.

The bench supplied punch and variance. Brandon Williams poured in 19 points on 7/8 shooting, including 2/2 from three, while also recording 5 turnovers. Gui Santos scored 15 on 6/9 but likewise had 5 turnovers as Sacramento’s pressure bit late. Georges Niang added 13 on 3/4 from deep. De’Anthony Melton did not score but blocked 3 shots, swiped a steal and added an assist in under 18 minutes, a useful defensive cameo. Stephen Curry’s light preseason run still featured 8 points and two made threes in just over 14 minutes. Charles Bassey chipped in 5 points and 3 boards in eight minutes as Golden State tested frontcourt combinations.

Kings’ takeaways: energy plays, finishing and late-game margins

Rookie guard Darius Acuff led the Kings with 25 points and 8 assists, shooting 8/15 and 4/6 from three while going a perfect 5/5 at the line. Maxime Raynaud gave Sacramento a strong bench spark with 10 points, 5 boards and a +13 in under nine minutes. Jonathan Mogbo filled the stat sheet with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals, bringing energy on both backboards and in the passing lanes. Leaky Black added 9 points, all on threes, in a tidy 3/3 from deep. Zach LaVine scored 11 with 3 steals, while Precious Achiuwa put up 8 points and 8 rebounds.

The Kings’ issue was not volume, it was conversion. They took 91 shots to the Warriors’ 79 but finished at 41%, including 45% on twos. Several rotation wings struggled from the floor, with Nique Clifford at 1/10, De’Andre Hunter at 2/8 and Daeqwon Plowden at 0/5. Sacramento did many of the effort things right. They forced turnovers, created 13 offensive rebounds and had the game’s longest run at 10 points. Yet the fourth quarter summed it up. Golden State’s 10 defensive rebounds and 7/8 free throws, paired with 6/14 shooting, kept control of the scoreboard for all 12 minutes. The Kings trimmed the gap but never seized the lead as whistles added up to 26 team fouls, gifting the Warriors 29 free throws across the night.

Where this preseason win points

For Golden State, the checklist looks encouraging. Two-point efficiency at 59%, 26 assists, and a strong defensive rebounding base traveled from quarter to quarter. The Warriors also flashed lineup depth, with double-digit scorers all over the box score and multiple positive plus-minus showings. Cleaning up the 21 turnovers, especially the eight in the final period, will be a clear focus as preseason minutes ramp up.

For Sacramento, there are positives to bank. A high-steals night, a deep bench with impact stretches and Acuff’s poised scoring are all promising signs. The next step is sharpening finishing inside the arc and turning pressure into points without giving up control on the glass. In a five-point game decided by shot quality and late boards, those margins are the difference. Fans can dive into the full box score, advanced splits and minute-by-minute momentum on Sofascore to track how these preseason trends evolve.