Category: NBA

Wall dishes out win over Kings

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By Jeremy Harness

AP photo: Marcin Gortat of the Washington Wizards battles for the ball as the Wizards defeated the Kings

Washington star guard John Wall has always been a big-time playmaker in the NBA who has put an emphasis on making his teammates better.

He took that to a new level Monday night.

Wall handed out a career-high 19 assists to go along with 12 points in leading his Wizards to a 113-99 win over the Kings at Washington’s Verizon Center.

However, he did commit five turnovers in the process, but that did not take much away from this achievement, especially considering the fact that the Wizards had three players out with assorted injuries on Monday and played with an eight-man rotation.

For the Kings, it was a minor setback for a team that lost for only the second time in six games

DeMarcus Cousins led the Kings with 22 points to go along with eight rebounds, even though he made only eight of his 22 shots to do so. Rajon Rondo, meanwhile, could not match Wall’s output. He had nine assists of his own as well as eight rebounds, but he had only two points and made only one of his seven shots and turned the ball over four times.

Rudy Gay chipped in with 16 points on 6-of-17 shooting and also pulled down seven rebounds, while Marco Belinelli scored 15 points while making six of his 12 shots from the field.

The Kings actually out-rebounded the Wizards, 46-38, but what doomed the Kings in the end was that they only made seven of their 22 attempts from behind the 3-point arc, while Washington made 14 of their 24 3-point shots.

 

Warriors hang tough, rally past Bucks to move to 26-1

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By Joe Hawkes-Beamon

OAKLAND — Klay Thompson scored a game-high 27 points and Stephen Curry added 26 points, 10 rebounds, and nine assists to help the Golden State Warriors avenge their only loss of the season with a 121-112 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks Friday night in front of a sellout Oracle Arena crowd.

Thompson shot 8 of 16 from the floor (2 of 9) on 3s, while Curry shot 7 of 14 including 2 of 6 on 3s.

Curry extended his streak to 100 games with at least one 3-pointer made.

The Bucks ended the Warriors 28-game winning streak dating back to last season in Milwaukee last weekend. Milwaukee came within an eyelash of  joining the Chicago Bulls as the last team to beat the Warriors at Oracle Arena.

With the win,  Golden State has now won 30 straight games at home.

Golden State (26-1) yielded a season-high 70 points in the first half, but turned on the defense in the second half by limiting Milwaukee to just 42 points the rest of the way. The Warriors found themselves down by as much 15 points in the third, and trailing by 11 points with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Draymond Green nailed a huge 3-pointer from straight away to pull the Warriors within three at 100-97 and after being fouled on a 3-point attempt, Curry sunk three free throws to tie the game midway in the fourth quarter.

Green finished with 21 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists, but Andre Iguodala’s 3-pointer from the corner pushed Golden State’s lead to seven cementing the Warriors’ victory.

The made 3-pointer by Iguodala was his only points of the game.

Festus Ezeli who played the majority of the game in place of starting center Andrew Bogut, finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Bogut left the game in the first quarter with a back injury and never returned.

Michael Carter-Williams led the Bucks with 24 points and Giannis Antetokounmpo chipped in 20 points for Milwaukee (10-18), who have dropped five of their last six games but have provided Golden State with its stiffest competition so far this season.

Greg Monroe had 10 points, 13 rebounds, and seven assists for the Bucks, who were out-rebounded 46-41 but shot a blistering 62 percent from the floor in the first half.

Khris Middleton added 16 points and Jabari Parker scored 14 points.

So much trash talk was voiced between both squads leading up to their rematch tonight and even after the final whistle, the trash talk couldn’t be stopped.

Green and O.J. Mayo had some heated words when exiting the court, prompting security and fellow players having to come in between the two before heading into the locker room.

Mayo scored just 12 points off the bench after scoring 18 points as a starter in the previous meeting in Milwaukee.

Milwaukee head to Phoenix Sunday, while Golden State doesn’t play until Wednesday when the Utah Jazz visit Oracle Arena.

 

Wiggins double-double Downs Kings

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

AP photo Timberwolves Andrew Wiggins passes past Kings Ben McLemore

The Sacramento Kings nearly overcame a dominant performance by the NBA’s reigning Rookie of the Year, but instead Andrew Wiggins and the Minnesota Timberwolves took the 99-95 victory at home Friday night.

Despite holding the Timberwolves to only one basket on their first 10 shots in the fourth, the Kings (10-16) couldn’t complete the comeback in the fourth quarter. They trailed 83-77 but held Minnesota to only one basket in the first 7 minutes of the final quarter then pulled ahead 90-89 with 3:03 left to play. Wiggins and Spaniard Ricky Rubio combined for 10 points down the stretch on one field goal and 8 free throws. The Kings only scored 5 points to end up on the losing end and give Minnesota (10-16) just its second win in the last 10 games.

Wiggins collected a game-high 32 points and 10 rebounds to notch the double-double while passing out 6 assists. Kings center DeMarcus Cousins grabbed a double-double of his own with 24 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Rajon Rondo returned from his suspension for using a gay slur against referee Bill Kennedy, who later announced he is gay. The Kings guard scored 11 points with 13 assists for his double-double.

Things don’t get any easier for the Kings. They face the Toronto Raptors Sunday afternoon in the North.

Golden State Resumes Winning Ways With 128-103 Thrashing of Suns

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By Shawn Whelchel

Returning to action for the first time since their winning streak came to an abrupt end, the Golden State Warriors resumed their winning ways with a dominating 128-103 victory over the Phoenix Suns at Oracle Arena on Wednesday.

With three days of rest under their belt, the Warriors had to shake off some first quarter rust, shooting under 40 percent from the field while playing in to the Suns’ strategy of making the contest more of a derby race than a basketball game. The result was a first quarter marathon that saw 50 total shots hoisted up between the two teams, with the Suns assuming a two-point advantage over the Warriors at the end of the first.

But the Warriors would not stay down for long, cleaning up their play on both sides of the ball while dictating the flow of the game in the second quarter to take a 13-point lead heading into the locker room. It would be the last time the Suns were even in contention.

The Warriors started the second half with a scorching offensive display, led by Klay Thompson, who scored 27 of his game-high 43 points in the third quarter. Steph Curry backed up his teammate with a mini-clinic of his own, putting through 13 points of his own to further the Warriors lead. The two Splash Brothers combined for 40 of the Warriors 46 third quarter points, effectively shutting the door on the Suns before the final frame even commenced.

Not to be outdone by their backcourt mates, Golden State’s big-men also got the job done for the Warriors in their dominating third quarter outburst. C Andrew Bogut continued to gobble up boards en-route to his 12-rebound night, while Draymond Green produced his fourth triple-double of the season by the sound of the whistle. He would finish the night with 16 points, 10 assists and 11 rebounds.

With no answer for the Warriors dominance on both ends of the court, the Suns were outscored 79-37 during the middle portion of the night’s contest, paving way for what was essentially a victory lap of a fourth quarter.

The Suns would come out shooting, putting up a game-high 38 points in the final quarter, but it would be too little, too late, as the Warriors would put the cap on the beginning of a possible new win-streak.

In a game between the league’s number one -the Warriors- and number three- the Suns- three point shooting teams, it was Golden State who used the deep ball to their advantage, scoring 45 of their points from behind the arc on 15 of 32 shooting. The Suns were uncharacteristically bad from downtown, putting through just 5 of their 22 attempts while trying to play catch up.

With the win, the Warriors were able to keep alive at least one winning streak, as they’ve now won 29 straight games at Oracle Arena. Ominously enough, the Milwaukee Bucks- who were responsible for snapping the Warriors 24 game streak on Saturday- will come to Oracle Arena on Friday to face Golden State for the second time in under a week.

3 C’s help Kings pick up win, 107-97, over Rockets

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by Michael Martinez

picture credit Google Images

SACRAMENTO- The Kings came in to the night knowing they would be  missing Rajon Rondo. Rondo was suspended for Tuesday night’s game after saying a derogatory term toward referee Bill Kennedy. Coming into the game, the Kings knew they were going to be missing offensive help and ball movement. Without Rondo, point guard Darren Collison got the start and he showed up big time. Along with DeMarcus Cousins who has been solid as of late and Omri Casspi who has stepped up big since Willie Cauley-Stein’s injury. Rudy Gay helped  the Kings on the offensive end as well and the Kings did a better job on defense while continuing to move the ball and score in the paint. The Kings (9-15) defeated the Houston Rockets (12-13), 107-97, for their third straight win at Sleep Train Arena.

As the game got underway, the Kings got out to an early lead after an 11-2 run. Collision showed off his passing ability with 4 assists in that short period of time. After the quick start the Kings slowed down a bit and the Rockets got ahead of the Kings. Cousins picked up a technical in the quarter and it was a back and forth shootout. The score at the end of the first was a 31-31 tie. Cousins put up 12 points on 3/7 from the field with 2 threes and added 4 rebounds. Cousins also picked up a technical. Gay added 7 points on 3/4 shooting. The team shot 50% from the field and scored 16 points in the paint.

The scoring in the 2nd quarter started with Casspi hitting a 3 pointer. Early on George Karl picked up a technical. The Kings did a good job of passing and pushing the ball. Collision hit Casspi on an alley-oop on a fast break. Collision had 9 assists in 11 minutes. Both teams were a little carless with the ball as they had 8 turnovers each in the 2nd and 14 for the Rockets and 13 turnovers for the Kings. Casspi came around scoring 8 points on 3/3 shooting. Collision put up 7 in the 2nd quarter, the only points he scored in the half. Cousins had a game high, 17 points on 4/10 shooting. James Harden had a team high 10 points. The Kings shot 48.8% for the half and scoring 30 points for the half in the paint. Dwight Howard picked up a technical with 2 minutes left in the quarter. With they better defense and good passing ability the Kings took the lead heading into the locker room, 57-50.

As the teams head out of the locker room, the Kings were doing a good job of finding the open man. Collison got a wide open 3 pointer at 9:48 the Rockets were forced to take a timeout. Collison and Casspi had another fast break dunk. And Rudy Gay helped on another fast break opportunity with Ben McLemore slamming a huge dunk on another fast break. The Kings issue was turning the ball over, 11 times, in the 3rd quarter. Luckily, the shot the ball at 60% and out rebounded the Rockets, 33-27. Harden tried to keep his team in it with 14 points the 3rd quarter, and 24 points by the end of the quarter. Cousins notched 23 points with 9/12 from the free throw line. Collision had 14 points through 3 quarters. 6-8 shooting, and 11 assists. Casspi scored 17 points. The Kings kept their lead over the Rockets, 82-74 to end the 3rd quarter and at one point had their biggest lead of 16 points in the quarter.

Heading into the last quarter, the Kings were looking to finish minus one of their star players. Marco Belinelli, who struggled all game, got 2 three pointers off to gain some confidence in his shot. He added another 3 pointer, for 9 points in the quarter. Rudy Gay posterized Patrick Beverly with a huge tomahawk slam. He added 5 in the quarter and 17 points for the game with 13 rebounds. He shot well, 6/11 from the field and the Kings shot 50.7% from the field. The Kings held a 15 point lead in the 4th quarter and finished the game, 107-97, to beat the Kings. The team finished with 50 point sin the paint, 47 rebounds and 25 assists. The only down fall was their 29 turnovers.

The 3 C’s helped lead the Kings (10-15) to a well deserved victory against the Rockets (12-14). Collision finished with his first double double of the season scoring 14 points and totaling 13 assists, in place of Rondo who is the league’s leading assists man. Collision finished with a season high in assists as well as rebounds totaling 7. Cousins had  a double double as well with 26 points and 12 rebounds. Casspi scored 19 points on 8/11 shooting from the field with 6 assists. The team did a good job of moving the ball around and getting good shots near the hoop. Harden did finish with 33 points, 10/18 from the field but the Kings put out a better defensive effort.

The Kings will take on the Minnesota Timberwolves on the road this  Friday and will seek revenge after losing to the T-Wolves earlier in the season. With a 3 game winning streak under their belt, the Kings will get back Rondo and look to continue their winning ways.

Kings Start Winning Streak!

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by Tony Renteria

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings (9-15) went into tonight’s contest against the Houston Rockets (12-13) with two consecutive wins under their belt and looking to extent to three with there first winning streak of the season and came away with a

The Kings took a strong push in the second quart to pull away after a high scoring first quarter that saw the both teams scoring 31 points.  The Kings out scored the Rockets in that strong second quarter and took a seven point lead going into the half.

The Kings were lead by DeMarcus Cousins who scored 26 points.   The Rockets were paced by James Harden’s 33 points but the Kings were too much for the visiting team this night.

The Kings were playing without suspended point guard Rajon Rondo who was suspended by the NBA for slurs against a referee and not leaving the court in a timely fashion after he was ejected.

The Kings head to Minnesota on the 18th to play the Timber-wolves, while the Rockets continue a west coast road swing by playing the Lakers in Los Angeles on Thursday night

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: Gay slurs by Rondo will have media hounding him and the Kings everywhere

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by Charlie O Mallonee

photo credit: larrybrownsports.com Rajon Rondo arguing call with NBA official Bill Kennedy in Mexico City

SACRAMENTO–It’s a sad day for the Sacramento Kings Rondo Rajon who used defamatory language at NBA official Bill Kennedy during a game in Mexico City against Boston, the other thing is I’m just disgusted. Rondo was later quoted telling Kennedy “your a mother——- faggot, your a f—— faggot Billy” after Rondo was hit with two technicals and tossed out of the ball game for arguing a call and then the second technical came after Rondo blew up at Kennedy.

I’m disgusted because the Kings have had off court issues ever since last season. Karl has said that nobody is untradeable that would include Kings star DeMarcus Cousins and they brought in Vlade Divac and Vivek Ranadive who said during an issue with Cousins being considered for being traded and Ranadive said that Cousins wasn’t going to be traded and Ranadive said at the time “maybe we ought to fire Karl.”

Finally all of that stuff had settled down and the Kings were starting to play some good basketball they got some things going. They had some things rolling, they started to smooth out and get everything else together and this bomb is dropped by Rajon in the disparaging remarks he made to Kennedy.

Charlie O does the Kings podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com  listen to the latest on Rajon Rondo and Kings basketball

Warriors’ streak ended in Milwaukee by Bucks

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By: Eric He

photo credit: AP Golden State Warrior Stephen Curry hangs head after loss to Milwaukee

It took 25 games, but the Golden State Warriors finally suffered their first loss, a 108-95 defeat on the road to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.

The Warriors trailed 80-77 at the start of the fourth, but the Bucks opened on a 11-2 run to take a 12-point lead with under seven minutes to play, taking advantage of the Warriors’ bench lineup.

Golden State was never able to recover from the deficit, despite Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green re-entering the game midway through the fourth.

A dunk by Michael Carter-Williams sealed the deal on the Warriors’ first loss.

The Warriors entered the night 24-0, hoping to become the first team in history to sweep a seven-game road trip. But their record-breaking start to the season was stopped short by an energetic Milwaukee squad.

Curry led the way with 28 points, while Green had 24 points. Greg Monroe led the Bucks with 28 points as well.

The Warriors started the third quarter on a 15-3 run, which ended with a dunk by Brandon Rush that cut the advantage to 7-69. A couple of layups by Jabari Parker pushed the lead back up to eight, and the Warriors trailed 80-77 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Bucks began the game on a spurt and led 14-5 early on after a couple of jumpers by O.J. Mayo. The Warriors ended the quarter on a 10-0 run to draw within 30-28 after one.

But the Warriors were outscored by nine in the second quarter. After they took a 33-30 lead, the Bucks went on a 12-2 run to take a seven-point advantage. The Warriors struggled from the floor as the Bucks poured it on. A three by Giannis Antetokounmpo put the Bucks ahead 56-42 late in the second.

Milwaukee took a 59-48 lead into halftime.

Warriors use guts, guile to keep legendary streak going

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By Jeremy Harness

The Warriors have won a lot of games with their lights-out outside shooting to go along with crisp execution on both sides of the court. Friday night, however, was not one of those occasions.

The Boston Celtics’ defensive toughness made things extremely tough on Stephen Curry & Co., which was already missing Klay Thompson and Harrison to ankle injuries, throughout the game and appeared poised to end the Warriors’ NBA-record undefeated streak.

However, he overcame that and found a way to score 38 points, and the Warriors followed suit to keep the streak alive with a 124-119 double-overtime thriller over the Celtics Friday night inside Boston’s TD Garden.

“Nothing was pretty about this game the whole time,” Curry said. “I can’t say enough about every guy who stepped out of the floor, considering all the injuries we had.

“A lot of people thought we were going to lose this game, (but) we got it done.”

To get past the Celtics, the Warriors ratcheted up their defensive intensity and made big stops down the stretch. Shaun Livingston, for example, got a huge block on Isaiah Thomas’ 3-point attempt to force the game into overtime.

Draymond Green, whom head coach Steve Kerr has identified as the heartbeat of their team, made several big plays, particularly in the second overtime that saw him drive past Amir Johnson to give the Warriors a three-point lead. His impact was also reflected in the stat sheet, as he finished with 24 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists, five blocks and five steals.

“Everybody stepped up to the challenge,” Green said. “This was a complete team win. Everybody wants to be that team that knocks you off. We’ve been getting everybody’s best shot, but we continue to give our shot back as well.

“There’s no pressure; we’re just playing basketball and having fun.”

The Warriors are chasing one more streak. They have now won 28 consecutive games dating back to last season and only stand five games behind the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers as the longest winning streak in NBA history.

 

Kings Hold Off Knicks 99-97

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By Tony Renteria

photo credit USA Today Knicks rookie Kristaps Porzingis and Kings center Kosta Koufos have a little misunderstanding during Thursday night’s game in Sacramento

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings (8-15) scored big early and held off a strong run in the fourth quarter by the visiting New York Knicks (10-13) to capture a 99-97 win.

The Kings led 46-29 in a low scoring first half. The Kings have been rumored to have some internal turmoil between the Head Coach George Karl and some players.  Yet tonight they were able to put that past them selves as they won their second consecutive game.

The Kings were led by All Star DeMarcus Cousins with 27 points and eleven rebounds with eight on the defensive end.  Cousin continues to play solid despite the locker room turmoil and some nagging injuries.

The visiting Knicks Carmelo Anthony to no surprise was the leading scorer for  the visiting team with a 23 points and an also not surprising five turnovers.

The Knicks head up north to play Portland while the Kings have five days off before they play Houston Rockets in Sacramento next Tuesday.