By George Devine, Sr.

The Kings were without a win on their current road trip, and seemed destined for one more loss before coming home to Sacramento. When DeMarcus Cousins limped off the court late in the game, there was little hope against the Knicks in their home court at Madison Square Garden. But a Sacramento rally in the fourth quarter brought the game to a tie and a surge in the extra period had the visitors winning, 106-101.

Rudy Gay was back in form, after being out a couple of games with the flu and playing below his typical 20-point level in the next two. He came in right at that number, but more to the point contributed a pair of key steals, 2 field goals from beyond the 3-point line (out of 6 attempts) and 7 rebounds, 4 of them on defense. He tied the score at the end of regulation — helping his team overcome a 13-point disadvantage — and his go-ahead trey in OT put the Kings ahead for good.

Cousins scored 19 points before departing the game, after playing 32:49. He had 14 rebounds, all but three of them defensive. Isaiah Thomas had 20 points and 7 assists. But the star of the evening, besides Gay, was Jimmie Fredette, who had his best night yet in the NBA with 24 points, and 2 crucial steals.

For New York, Carmelo Anthony scored 36 points and Tyson Chandler added 17. Each had 11 boards. Raymond Felton contributed 8 points and a dozen assists. Amare Stoudemire had 20 points and 2 blocks. Anthony missed what could have been a winning basket at the end of regulation, and the Kings’ defense shut him down in the extra period.

In their next game the Kings host the Golden State Warriors at Sleep Train Arena on Wednesday, February 19 at 7:00 p.m. PST.