by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings hung on in overtime to defeat the New York Knicks 135-129 on Saturday night. For the Knicks, it was their seventh loss in a row.

The key to Kings (13-17) victory was the return of DeMarcus Cousins to the lineup. Cousins missed the Phoenix game with the flu. Against the Knicks, Cousins scored 39 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, dished out four assists and blocked two shots. He put up those numbers despite having to spend nine minutes of the third quarter and three minutes of the fourth on the bench due to four personal fouls.

Rudy Gay also had a big night for Sacramento. Gay recorded 29 points, two rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocked shots while being tasked with defending Carmelo Anthony for the entire game.

Darren Collison had another strong performance for the Kings. Collison recorded a double-double scoring 27 points and distributing 10 assists. He shot nine of 10 from the field while going three for three from beyond the 3-point arc.

Carmelo Anthony paced the Knicks (5-27) with 36 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and one steal. Tim Hardaway Jr. put up 19 points with 11 of those points coming in the fourth quarter.

Shane Larkin and Samuel Dalembert performed well coming off the bench. Larkin scored 14 while Dalembert put 11 to go with four blocked shots.

The Kings came out in the first quarter ready to play. Sacramento built a 15 point lead near the end of the quarter. Cousins and Gay scored 15 points each to give the Kings a 38-27 lead after the first period.

The Knicks came back to life in the second quarter led by Anthony’s nine points. Shane Larkin played the entire quarter and added six points. New York was 10 of 20 from the field while going 10 for 11 from the free throw line. The Knicks outscored the Kings 31-29 in the second. At halftime, Sacramento led New York 67-58.

The third quarter proved to be a draw as both teams scored 22 points each. Rudy Gay led the Kings with eight points while DeMarcus Cousins was on the bench with four personal fouls. Anthony and Larkin led the Knicks with six point apiece. At the end of three quarters, the Kings were clinging to an 89-80 lead.

In the fourth quarter, New York began to take advantage of the Kings missed shots by grabbing rebounds and setting up the fast break. The Knicks scored 14 fastbreak points to just four for the Kings. New York also worked the boards for second chance points scoring 10 with the extra opportunities. The Knicks outscored the Kings 37-28 in the fourth to tie the game. A Tim Hardaway fastbreak lay-up tied the game at 117 all to force the overtime period.

The Kings scored first in overtime on a Cousins lay-up. The teams traded baskets and were tied at 124 when Jose Calderon hit a six foot jump shot to give the Knicks their first lead of the night at 126-124. Cousins hit two free throws to tie the game at 126 all. The Kings went on a 9-0 run that allowed them to win the game 135-129.

After the game, Kings head coach Tyrone Corbin said, ‘”It was a very much needed win. Even though it wasn’t the prettiest basketball, we’ll take the win.”

Knicks head coach Derek Fisher analyzed the game by saying, “Well of course. First and foremost is the effort. I thought that they remained committed to each other as teammates no matter what the circumstances were. They just kept fighting out there.Most nights you have to have that in order to give yourself a chance to win and we had that tonight. We just couldn’t get over the hump.”

The Kings now hit the road for a four game road trip. Sacramento will play in Brooklyn on Monday.

Game Notes: the Kings are now 8-10 at home and 3-1 in overtime games for the season … Cousins 39 points were a season high … Gay’s 29 points was his 18th 20 point or more game of the season …the Knicks are now 2-14 on the road.