Category: NBA

Kings lose to Suns 117-115 for second straight loss

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Photo credit: @NBA

By: Ana Kieu

PHOENIX — The Sacramento Kings dropped a 117-115 decision to the Phoenix Suns at the Talking Stick Resort Arena Monday night.

The Suns fired their head coach Earl Watson after the team’s 0-3 start so far this season. Watson left the position with a 33-85 record. Shortly after, they promoted Jay Triano as an interim head coach.

The Kings, on the other hand, got blown out by the Denver Nuggets 96-79 last Saturday. So they were obviously hungry for a win.

The Suns were off to a fast start in the first quarter. They were also on fire from the three-point line. They led the Kings 36-17 after the first. Marquese Chrisse had 10 points and two rebounds.

The Kings had a rough first half. The Suns continued to bring their offense as Alex Len’s dunk was nice, but the pass from Tyler Ulis was even better. After a Kings delay of violation, TJ Warren blocked George Hill’s five-foot driving layup and then Bogdan Bogdanovic missed a 22-foot jumper.

The Kings mounted a large comeback with 34 points in the second quarter, but trailed the Suns 59-51 at the end of the first half. Despite missing an extended jumper, Bogdanovic had 13 points in 12 minutes in the second.

Troy Daniels’ three-pointer put the Suns up by nine with 3:36 left in the third quarter. Skal Labisserie made a dunk with 1:09 left in the third. However, Labisserie missed a shot as the clock winded down and the Suns held a 87-76 lead over the Kings after the third.

The Suns reached the 100-point mark when Dragan Bender made the first of two free throws with 6:35 left in the fourth quarter. Bender did end up making both free throws after Tyson Chandler entered the game to take Len’s place.

Not much luck for the Kings as Willie Cauley-Stein drew a shooting foul with 6:13 left in the third. But there was a light at the end of the tunnel as soon as Garrett Temple made a 26-foot three-pointer to pull the Kings within 10 with 5:54 left. Labisserie then entered the game for Kosta Koufos, which prompted the Suns to take a timeout.

The score reverted back to single digits (102-94) after Bogdanovic found Cauley-Stein for the dunk with 5:17 remaining. The Kings were behind the Suns until De’Aaron Fox made an eight-foot driving floating jump shot, tying the game at 112 apiece with 58 seconds left in regulation.

Though, a shot by Mike Jones put the Suns ahead 114-112 with only 14 seconds left to go. Both teams called timeouts and Devin Booker made two free throws to extend the Suns’ lead to 116-113. Yet, the Kings weren’t ready to back down as Hill responded with two of his own.

Troy Daniels added a down-to-the-wire free throw to expand the Suns’ lead to 117-115. The Suns held on for their first win of the season, a 117-115 victory, and handed the Kings their second straight loss.

Notes
Bogdan Bogdanovic made his debut with the Kings.

Here’s a throwback from the Kings’ last game against the Suns in Phoenix. Skal Labissiere dropped a career-high and game-high 32 points that day.

Up Next
The Kings return to action Thursday night as they host the New Orleans Pelicans at Golden 1 Center at 7:30 p.m. PST.

Kings get winded at 5280 feet and lose to Denver 96-79

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Den-ZBo
Zach Randolph scored 11 points and grabbed 9 rebounds on Saturday night Photo: USA Today

NBA teams have only a 33-percent chance of winning the second game of a back-to-back set on the road. Sacramento won in Dallas on Friday night. The odds were against them going into Denver on Saturday which is why they entered the game as a -12.5 point underdog.

When the final buzzer sounded, the Kings had lost their second game of the season as the Nuggets outscored them 96-79. Denver   did not play that spectacular. They just played less sloppy than the Kings did in the game.

For all of the Sacramento rookies, this was their first back-to-back set of games on the road. Add in the fact that the game was played at “mile high” altitude” in Denver and it becomes a real learning situation. This is not an effort to make excuses for the Kings but rather an opportunity to explain the literal uphill battle they faced on Saturday night.

Rebound stats may explain the entire game

The Nuggets out-rebounded the Kings 58-39 in the game. There are very few games where a team can give up 19 more rebounds to their opponents and walk away with a victory.

When the rebounding stats are broken down even further, the impact of Denver’s efforts becomes even greater. The Nuggets pulled down 18 rebounds on offense which created 13 second chance point opportunities. Denver converted eight of the second chance situations which turned into 19 points.

The Kings had only 12 offensive rebounds that turned into 10 points. Eight of those rebounds on offense came in the second half when the Kings had a significant scoring deficit to make up so they did not have the impact they might have had earlier in the game.

The problem — tired legs. You could see that the Kings did not have the spring in their legs like they had in Dallas on Friday night. Fatigue and altitude can be brutal. Yes, the young players will to learn how to deal with these adversities, but that is why fans have been cautioned to remember this is going to be a season of learning.

Top Performances

Den-Skal
Labissiere came off the bench to score 13 points for SAC Photo: USA Today Sports

Kings

  • De’Aaron Fox continued to amaze on Saturday night as he scored a team-high (tied for game-high) 18 points shooting 8-for-13 from the floor. He sank one 3-pointer, grabbed five rebounds and had one assist. He did all of that while being double-teamed by the defense much of the game.
  • Skal Labissiere came off the bench and brought some offense to the game for the Kings. He finished with 13 points in 25-minutes on the floor. He shot 6-for-12 including one 3-pointer. Labissiere also pulled down four rebounds and dished out four assists.
  • Z-Bo showed the young kids how an “O.G” plays in a back-to-back on the road. He put up 11 points in 20-minutes. He also grabbed nine rebounds (four offensive). Randolph spent much of the game being very frustrated with the officials and the lack of foul calls.
  • Rookie Frank Mason III played in his first NBA game and scored seven points.
  • Malachi Richardson saw some playing time most of which came in the fourth quarter and scored eight points.
  • Coach Dave Joerger used all 13 of his active players in the game on Saturday night.

Nuggets

Den-Farid
Faried came off the bench to score 18 points for the Nuggets Photo USA Today Sports
  • Denver had two players who tied for team-high in scoring and game-high in scoring with De’Aaron Fox. Paul Millsap put up 18 points to go with nine rebounds. The hyperactive Kenneth Faried came off the bench to score 18 shooting 7-for-10.
  • Guard Gary Harris scored 17 points going 7-for-11 from the field including three 3-pointers. Early in the game, he just broke loose and worked the backdoor for easy buckets under the basket.
  • Will Barton quietly scored 15 points for the Nuggets. He shot 6-for-13 overall and went 3-for-8 from 3-point land.

Team Performances

It was not a beautiful game for either team.

Sacramento (1-2)

  • The Kings shot just 36.6-percent (31-for-85) for the game. They went just 8-for-23 (34.8-percent) from beyond the 3-point arc.
  • Free throw opportunities were in short supply again on Saturday night. SAC went to the line just 13 times in the game and hit nine of those opportunities. They have to increase the number of free throw attempts per game.
  • They dished out 15 assists but turned it over 14 times which resulted in 19 Denver points. That ratio is not acceptable.
  • Rebounding — that has already been discussed.

Denver (1-1)

  • The Nuggets shot an acceptable 43.5-percent (37-for-85) from field. They hit 10-of-30 3-point opportunities (33.3-percent).
  • Denver went 12-for-20 from the charity stripe.
  • Their 58-39 rebound advantage really made the difference in the game for the Nuggets.
  • The Nuggets distributed 25 assists and turned the ball over 16 times. Those TOVs resulted in 13 points for the Kings.

Up next

Sacramento

The Kings will have Sunday off in the Valley of the Sun and then will face the 0-3 Phoenix Suns on Monday night. The Suns lost to the Clippers in Los Angeles on Saturday night 130-88. FiveThirtyEight.com gives the Suns a 66-percent chance to win the game. They make Phoenix -4-point favorite.

Denver

The Nuggets will return to action on Wednesday in Charlotte versus the Hornets. Denver is a 2.5-point underdog according FiveThirtyEight.

Final Note

Den-Malone
Denver head coach Michael Malone Photo USA Today Sports

The rivalry between Denver and Sacramento because they are facing former Kings coach Michael Malone is officially over. No player on the Kings roster was ever coached by Malone. Wow! How quickly things can change in the NBA.

Memphis Grizzlies coast to an easy win over the Warriors 111-101;Warriors fall twice in last three games

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Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry reacts during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday, Oct. 21, 2017, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

by Jerry Feitelberg

Memphis- The Memphis Grizzlies stunned the Golden State Warriors Saturday night as they beat the defending champs 111-101. The Grizzlies, who beat the Warriors twice year and own a 13-10 advantage over them since the 2011-2012 season. Memphis coach Dave Fizdale had his players ready to go, and they did not disappoint.

The Grizzly attack was led by veteran center Marc Gasol. Gasol tallied 37 points and had 14 rebounds. The Grizzlies lost Zach Randolph and defensive whiz Tony Allen, but that didn’t matter. The game was within reach for the Warriors at the end of the first half of play. The Warriors were outscored 31-25 in the first quarter and the teams each scored 25 points in the second quarter. The half ended with Golden State trailing by five 56-51.

The Warriors, who have blown away opponents in the third quarter, had a forgettable twelve minutes of play as they mad just six shots in 22 tries. The Grizzlies went on a 15-0 run to put the game out of reach. They led 88-71 at the end of the third period. The Warriors mounted a comeback in the fourth quarter but it was too little, too late and they lost by ten 111-101.

Game Notes- Steph Curry was ejected from the game with 43 seconds left in the game. Steph made a layup, and he thought he was fouled. When he did not get the call from referee Scott Wall, he slammed his mouthpiece on the floor underneath the basket. Wall tossed him from the game. Steph remarked “my pockets will be a lot lighter for sure. My frustration boiled over, did something stupid, deserved to be kicked out, and that’s what happened.” Steph denied that he was trying to hit Wall with the mouthpiece. “If I tried to throw it at him. I have a pretty good aim I would have been able to execute that.”

Kevin Durant continued to argue with the refs, and he too was tossed from the game. One could say that the Warriors did not have a good day in Memphis.

Game Notes- Steph led the Warriors with 37 points. KD added 29, and he had 13 boards. Klay Thompson knocked down just 14. Draymond Green had 3. Zaza Pachulia, Andre Iguodala, Patrick McCaw, and Nick Young were all scoreless. Marc Gasol paced the Grizzlies with 34 points and 14 boards. Michael Conley was held to just ten points.  The Grizzly bench outscored the Dubs’ bench 41-18, and that was enough to cement the win for Memphis.

The Warriors are now 1-2 for the season, and Memphis owns a 2-0 start. The Dubs travel to Dallas to face the Mavericks Monday night. Game time is at 5:30pm.

Warriors rally to win their first game of the season as they down New Orleans Pelicans 128-120

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Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) blocks a shot by New Orleans Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday (11) in the first half of an NBA basketball game in New Orleans, Friday, Oct. 20, 2017. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

by Jerry Feitelberg

New Orleans- The Golden State Warriors had their hands full with the spirited New Orleans Pelicans Friday night in the Crescent City. The Dubs rallied from a fifteen-point deficit halfway in the second quarter and looked like the champs that they are as they won 128-120

The Pelicans, without question, outplayed the Warriors in the first quarter. They shredded the vaunted Warrior defense as they scored at will and poured in thirty-nine points to lead 39-26. The Pelicans increased the lead to 57-42 halfway through the second quarter before the sleep-walking Warriors woke up and exerted themselves. The Warriors went on a 19-7 run to end the first half and trailed by three 64-61.

The Warriors surge carrier over into the third quarter. As they have done so many times last year, they owned the third quarter and went on a 26-7 run and finished the third quarter with an eight-point advantage. The Pelicans kept the pressure on in the fourth quarter, but Golden State refused to wilt. Each time scored thirty points in the final stanza, and the Warriors finished the night with the win.

Klay Thompson, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant paced the Warriors to victory. Klay led the team with thirty-one points. Steph followed with twenty-eight, seven assists, and three board. Kevin Durant added twenty-two points, seven rebounds, and a career-high six blocks. Draymond Green pitched in with ten points, eight assists, and five rebounds.  The two big men for the Pelicans, Anthony Davis, and DeMarcus Cousins, each scored thirty-five points. Davis had seventeen boards and Cousins pulled down fourteen. Other Pelicans in double figures were Jrue Holiday, Jordan Crawford, and former Warrior Ian Clark. Clark finished the night with thirteen points.

Game Stats- The Warriors shot 52.2% from the floor and knocked down eighteen three-point shots in forty attempts. They also recorded thirty-one assists. The Warriors defense came through with five steals and eight blocks.

After the game, Steve Kerr remarked that Klay Thompson “was on his game right away.” Klay did not start well last year, but his performance has been stellar so far this year. Kerr said this about the defense:’ I thought we had a much better defensive stretch than we ever had in the Houston game.”

The Warriors play the Memphis Grizzlies Saturday night in Memphis. Game time is at 5 pm.

Kings post first win of 2017-18 on the road Friday night beating Dallas 93-88

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

Dal Hill
George Hill was the Kings scoring leader with 21 points Photo: USA Today Sports

Sacramento won the game because they played with intensity

Nothing may illustrate that point more than the sequence that took place with 34.1-seconds left to play in the game and the Kings leading 89-86. Zach Randolph missed a 16-foot fadeaway jump shot. Buddy Hield made a hustle rebound under the basket to keep the possession alive for Sacramento. George Hill ultimately hit a 17-foot jumper that for all intensive purposes sealed the win for the Kings.

This was a game of runs

In the second quarter, the Mavs went on a 12-0 run to go up 38-26 and it looked like Kings were going to be in real trouble on the road before halftime. The Kings woke up and went on to outscore the Mavericks 20-8 in the final 5:22 of the period. George Hill was the leader with help from Z-Bo, Cauley-Stein and Buddy Hield.

Sacramento came back to floor ready to go after halftime. They won the 3rd quarter by posting 25 points to just 14 for Dallas. Buddy Hield led the scoring barrage with eight points while Hill added seven points and Randolph put up six. The Kings went into the 4th quarter with a 71-60 lead.

Another run started immediately at the beginning of the final quarter. Unfortunately for the Kings, it was the Mavericks who went on an 11-0 run to take a 72-71 lead with 9:38 to go in the game. Dirk Nowitzki — yes the old guy — and J.J. Barea were the players who fueled the run for Dallas.

The Kings retook the lead when Skal Labissiere hit a 19-foot jumper (assist Fox) at 8:46 to make it a 73-72 game. The Kings would never relinquish the lead again in the contest. They did not have an easy time in those final minutes but they played them with a lead.

Top Performers

Dal z-bo
Zach “Z-Bo” Randolph made his presence known in Dallas Photo: USA Today Sports

Sacramento

  • George Hill was the man again on Saturday night with 21 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. He shot 9-for-12 from the floor and was a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the 3-point line.
  • Zach Randolph got the start at center in Dallas after having to miss the home opener due to oral surgery. Z-Bo showed off his toughness on both ends of the court as he scored 13 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. Three of those rebounds came on offense — think second chance point opportunities.
  • Buddy Hield recorded 13 points and 6 rebounds but it was that one offensive rebound with under a minute to go in the game that was really clutch. He did not have a great shooting night going 4-for-11 from the floor (1-for-6 for 3’s). Hield was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. He also dished out 3 assists.
  • Willie Cauley-Stein or maybe we should call him “Mr. Double-Double”. He scored 10 points and hauled in 11 rebounds for his second consecutive double-double game.
  • “The Fox” was hot again on Friday night. How about 10 assists in the game coming off the bench? He scored 9 points, had 6 rebounds and 1 steal in 26-minutes on the floor.
  • Other contributors: Labissiere 8 points + 5 rebounds, Temple 8 points + 6 rebounds,  Vince Carter 6 points, Koufos 3 points + 5 rebounds and Justin Jackson 2 points + 4 rebounds.

Dallas

  • Top scorer for his team and the game — Harrison Barnes 24 points on 8-for-18 shooting.
  • Yogi Ferrell hit some key baskets to keep his team in the contest and finished with 14 points.
  • Dorian Finney-Smith scored 14 points coming off the bench and was a big factor late in the game.
  • J.J. Barea — who started at point guard because Dennis Smith, Jr. was held out due to swelling in a knee — scored 9 points and distributed 10 assists.
  • Dirk Nowitzki — first vice president of AARP — played 29-minutes scoring 10 points and pulling down 9 rebounds. He really is my hero.

Team Stats

Dal WCS
Mr. Double-Double Willie Cauley-Stein Photo: USA Today Sports

Kings

  • SAC shot 42.5-percent from the field (37-for-87)
  • They hit 10-of-23 from 3-point range. That is 43.5-percent shooting. Joerger has to pleased with that.
  • The Kings made 9-of-13 free throw attempts. They had only 10 attempts versus Houston. The 13 on Friday was an improvement but that total needs to get up into the 20s.
  • Kings out-rebounded the Mavs 57-36. More importantly, they owned the offensive glass 16-7.
  • The team had 20 assists and 14 turnovers giving up 14 points off those TOVs.
  • Second Chance Points Kings 14 vs Mavericks 6

Dallas

  • The Mavericks shot 41.3-percent from the field (31-for-75)
  • They were 11-for-33 (33.3-percent) from beyond the arc
  • Dallas went to the FT line 21 times and converted 15 of those attempts
  • The Mavs posted 19 assists while turning the ball over 12 times (6 points for Kings)

Both teams play Saturday night on the road

Sacramento

The Kings (1-1) head north and will play at a “Mile High” in Denver when they will face the 0-1 Nuggets. This will be the first road back-to-back set for the Kings rookies. Denver is 0-1 this season. Game time is 6 p.m. PDT.

Dallas

The 0-2 Mavericks will head south to face the 2-0 Houston Rockets in their home opener. They will not have to see Chris Paul who will be out 2-4 weeks due to his knee injury.

Kings Press Row Podcast: Post-Mortem on loss to Rockets in season opener

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hosts Charlie O. Mallonee and Jordan Chapin

Fox to hoop
Fox was fearless in driving the lane against the Rockets on Wednesday night

  • Kings showed great effort versus the Rockets on Wednesday night

  • This was a classic battle between a Tier 1 team and a Tier 3 team

  • Willie Cauley-Stein silenced many of his detractors

  • The Kentucky connection came up big for the Kings in the opener – Cauley-Stein, Labissiere and Fox made a major impact in the game

  • Buddy Hield was a major player for SAC in the game

  • George Hill showed why the front office wanted him on the roster to provide a veteran presence on the floor

  • The Kings play their first game on the road Friday night in Dallas – this will be a Tier 3 vs Tier 3 game. Both teams will be in the 2018 Draft Lottery

  • It will be a chance to see Dennis Smith who many media reporters feel has the inside track on becoming Rookie of the Year

Join us for out next Kings Press Row Podcast next Tuesday only on SportsRadioService.com.

Cauley-Stein to hoop
Cauley-Stein goes up for 2 of his 21 points

Kings fight to the final buzzer but come up short as Rockets win 105-100

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016294a29817a60010b0e75feea0aafad5c273a41d
Cauley-Stein puts in a dunk to cut the Rockets lead to three points with seven seconds to go in the game

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Kings open the 2017-18 regular season with loss to the powerful Houston Rockets

The Sacramento Kings kicked off their new season before a sellout crowd of 17,583 at the Golden 1 Center on Wednesday night. Their opponent was the very powerful and talented Houston Rockets who started their season on Tuesday night with a last second win over the defending NBA Champion Golden State Warriors in Oakland.

The Kings hoped to take advantage of catching the Rockets on the second game of a back-to-back set on the road. They also received some good news when they learned that Chris Paul would not play due to ongoing problems with a knee contusion.

Sacramento (0-1) kept the game close through all four quarters. They even won the third quarter 24-23. The lead changed eight times in the game and the contest was tied four times. Houston’s largest lead was 11 points while the Kings biggest lead was six.

James Harden struggled through the first three quarters of the game appearing to be tired from effort that expended versus the Warriors on Tuesday night. Unfortunately for the Kings, Harden caught a second wind in the final period and scored 12 of his game-high 27 points over those last 12 minutes. That performance really made the difference for the Rockets (2-0).

Despite being down by 11 points with 5:13 remaining in the game the Kings did not give up and cut the Houston lead to just three points with 26-seconds to go in the contest. It was at that point this game took a left turn that the Kings would never recover from.

The Kings George Hill sank two free throws to make it a 98-95 game with Houston in the lead with 26-seconds remaining. On the inbounds play, Hill appeared to disrupt the possession by Eric Gordon who lost control allowing the ball to go out-of-bounds. The big crowd went wild but settled as a video replay was ordered.

What the crowd, the Kings bench and the majority of the media did not understand was the replay was not to determine if Gordon was the last player to touch the ball before it went out-of-bounds. The replay was to confirm a foul call that made on Hill by the referee on the far-side of the court. The replay center in Secaucus upheld the foul call and Gordon was sent to the charity stripe to shoot two shots.

Gordon hit both shots to give Houston a five-point lead with 26-seconds to play essentially sealing the win for the Rockets. The Kings gave it their best effort but came up short.

Kings head coach Dave Joerger addresses the call in a very subdued manner in part two of his video comments.

Dave Joerger was very proud of the effort his team gave against the talented Rockets

  • Sacramento shot 42-for-88 (47.7%) from the floor
  • The Kings shot 8-for-23 (34.8%) from 3-point land
  • The team went just 8-for-10 from the free throw line vs. 27-for-29 for the Rockets

Joerger was not happy about the foul call that was upheld by the video replay center

  • De’Aaron Fox 14 points (7-for-15 shooting), five assists, four rebounds, 23-minutes of playing time
  • Buddy Hield 19 points (8-for-17 shooting including three 3’s), five rebounds, four assists, one steal

Coach Joerger was pleased with the play of Willie Cauley-Stein

  • Cauley-Stein with the double-double: 21 points (game-high for SAC), 10-for-15 shooting, 10 rebounds (four offensive), three blocked shots

This was a Tier One vs a Tier Three game

  • Kings played without Zach Randolph who was sidelined by oral surgery
  • Bogdan Bogdanovic did not play because of a sprained right ankle

The Kentucky connection was very important to the Kings on Wednesday 

  • Skal Labissiere 12 points, 10 rebounds to post a double-double
  • Cauley-Stein, Labissiere and Fox = 47 points, 24 rebounds, seven assists

Up next for the Kings and Rockets

  • Sacramento heads out on the road and will face the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night
  • The Rockets will have their home opener on Saturday night when they host the Dallas Mavericks

Kings Press Row Podcast featuring Ben DuBose of Sports Talk 790 Houston previewing the Rockets

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Charlie O hosts the Kings Press Row Podcast

Ben DuBose Pix

Ben DuBose of Sports Talk 790 Houston and Locked on Rockets Podcast previews the Houston Rockets for Kings fans.

Cp3
CP3 moves past Curry Photo: USA Today
  • How are James Harden and Chris Paul working out as a backcourt team so far in the preseason?
  • With Harden and CP3 on the floor together does that change the pace of play for the Rockets?
  • How does local favorite Ryan Anderson look so far in the preseason?
  • Now that the roster is set – are there any surprises?
  • Is there any worry about a let down on Wednesday in Sacramento after the hype and energy that will be expended in the Bay Area versus the Golden State Warriors?

Get the insiders view of the Kings first opponent of the 2017-18 season in just 20 minutes of fast paced questions and answers. Be ready for opening night by knowing more about the Rockets and what to watch for as they play the Kings.

press row image

 

Houston Rockets stun the Warriors on Opening Night 122-121

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From left, Golden State Warriors David West, Kevin Durant, Patrick McCaw, and Klay Thompson look up at a replay of the final play of the game against the Houston Rockets during the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. Rockets won 122-121. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND- The visiting Houston Rockets rallied from a thirteen-point deficit at the end of the third quarter to defeat the Golden State Warriors Tuesday night at Oracle Arena by a score of 122-121.

The Warriors had a pre-game ceremony before the start of the game to give the players and coaches their championship rings and unfurl the 2016-2017 banner. The fans were excited to see the players back in action and were hoping to get the season started with a win. That did not happen as the Rockets refused to break and were able to win the fourth quarter to seal the win. The Dubs almost won as Kevin Durant sank a two-point bucket as time expired. The review of the play determined that KD’s hand was still on the ball when the buzzer sounded and the referees waved off the basket.

Houston’s only lead until late in the game came in the first quarter. The Warriors led all the way until late in the game. The Dubs led 121-120, but the Rockets made a two-pointer and held the Dubs at bay for the win.

The Warriors led by one at the end of the first quarter and by nine 71-62 at the end of the first half. Nick Young, who is known as Swaggy P, led the way in the first half. Young was hot, and he scored twenty points to lead the attack. Steph Curry missed a lot of playing time in the half as he was saddled with three personal fouls. Klay Thompson was hot in the early going, but his production tailed off the rest of the way. Klay, however, was terrific on defense. Kevin Durant tallied ten points in the first 24 minutes of action, but the Dubs appeared to be struggling even as the put 71 points on the board. James Harden and Eric Gordon were the big guns for Houston.

In the third quarter, Curry left after he picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter. KD Got hot, and the Dubs were able to end the third quarter with a thirteen point advantage 101-88. There was a sour note as Draymond Green injured his knee and had to leave the game. Draymond was diagnosed with a knee strain and did not return. Coach Steve Kerr used rookie Jordan Bell in his place, and Bell played well.

The fourth quarter belonged to the Rockets. Houston started the final stanza with a 7-0 run to trail by six 101-95. Steph kept the Dubs in the game as he made two 3-pointers and two two-pointers. The Rockets met every challenge, and their defense kept the Warriors from extending the lead. The Rockets continued to chip away as they were excellent on defense. They forced turnovers, made steals and stopped the Dubs after the Warriors held a three-point lead 121-118. The Rockets scored the final four points of the game for the win.

Game Notes- Andre Iguodala did not play as he is having a back issue. Omri Casspi played several minutes, but he left the game with an undisclosed injury and did not return. The Warriors had to juggle the rotations. JaVale McGee did not play. Jordan Bell replaced ZaZa Pachulia in the first and third quarters. David West started the second and fourth quarters as he did last season.

Nick Young led the Dubs with 23 points. Steph had 22 points, 4 assists, and 5 rebounds. Draymond Green just missed a triple-double. Draymond tallied nine points, 13 assists, and 11 boards. KD had 20 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds.  Klay ended the night with sixteen and had this to say after the game:” Our communication wasn’t good. We played a great game, but we let them back in the game. We’ll get better.” Jordan Bell knocked down 8 points in his NBA debut.

The Rockets were led by James Harden’s 27 points. Clint Capela 12, Ryan Anderson, 13, Chris Paul 4, and Trevor Ariza had 8. The Rockets bench outscored the Dubs bench 58-5. Luc Mbah a Moute scored 14, PT Tucker added 20 and Eric Gordon pitched in with 24. Jordan Bell led the Dubs bench with eight and the rest of the bench scored just seventeen points.

The Warriors start a three-game road trip Friday night in New Orleans, Saturday night in Memphis, and Monday night in Dallas.

 

 

Warriors hand Kings fourth consecutive preseason loss on Friday 117-106

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

Where was the TV broadcast?

Related image

Sports fans the story should be the game in Oakland and the loss by the Kings to the Warriors, but this reporter has to ask why was the game shown in the Bay Area and not in Sacramento and the Valley? Frankly this this reporter is still scratching his head trying to figure out why the rabid Kings fans were not able to watch their team take on the best team in the NBA even if it was a preseason game.

The majority of Kings fans will not be able to see the Warriors play their beloved Kings in person this season. They would love to see their team in action against the NBA’s best anytime they have the opportunity to see it happen. So why did Bay Area fans have the opportunity to watch the game while Sacramento fans had to depend on the radio broadcast and internet feeds? There really is not a logical answer. One would think advertisers would have been thrilled to support a broadcast that featured the Kings versus the NBA’s  best.

The Kings held their own in this game

Sacramento trailed just 54-51 at halftime. They were still hanging in there trailing by just three – 84-81 at the end of three quarters. Ultimately, the Warriors were just too strong coming down the stretch as they outscored the Kings 33-25 in the final frame to take the game 117-106.

This game featured 12 lead changes and was tied seven times. The longest point run was a 7-0 run.

Top scorers

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David Stockton – who was just added to the Kings roster – was their leading scorer with 23 points. Stephen Curry led the Warriors in scoring with 18 points in just a little over 18 minutes of playing time.

Top rebounders

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The Warriors Jordan Bell was the leading rebounder in the game with 11. Skal Labissiere was the Kings top man off the glass grabbing eight rebounds.

Assists leaders

David Stockton of Sacramento was the games top assists leader with eight. Klay Thompson was the man for Golden State dishing out six dimes.

Team stats

The Warriors outrebounded the Kings 47-40. Golden State grabbed 21 offensive rebounds to Sacramento’s 13. The Kings controlled the defensive boards 27-26.

GSW dished 34 dimes to the Kings 27.

The Kings made six steals to the Warriors four thefts.

Golden State blocked four shots while Sacramento blocked just two shots.

The Kings turned the ball over 16 times while the Warriors turned it over just 12 times.

Overall shooting percentage: Kings 48.2-percent (41-for-85); Warriors 46.9-percent (46-for-98).

3-point shooting: Sacramento 10-for-22 45.5-percent; Golden State 15-for-33 45.5-percent.

Remember this was a preseason game

No matter how exciting this game was fans cannot forget this was a preseason game. It was in no way representative of what a regular season game between these two teams will be like. That is not to say the regular season games will not be competitive and exciting, but they will be different than the game on Friday night.

The countdown to the regular season is on

The regular season will begin on Wednesday when the Houston Rockets visit the Golden 1 Center to take on the Kings in game one of the 2017-18 season for Sacramento.