Tag: Dallas Mavericks

Who are these guys? Kings tame the Mavs 133-111

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
NBA: Dallas Mavericks at Sacramento Kings
Photo Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Dallas Mavericks (35-38) came to Sleep Train Arena on Sunday as a team that needed a win to stay alive in the playoff hunt. The Mavs began the contest as the number nine team in the Western Conference. When the game was over, Dallas was still in ninth place one-half  game behind the Rockets for final spot in the playoffs.

The Sacramento Kings (29-44) really have nothing left to play for except for professional pride. The Kings made themselves proud on Sunday as they ran the Dallas Mavericks out of the building and won the game 133-111. It was the Kings second consecutive win on their home court in three days.

The Kings scored 30-plus points in three of the four quarters. Sacramento never trailed the Mavs in the game. The Kings put up a game-high 39 points in the third quarter.

That third quarter production is key because the Kings have been in many games this season where they played well in the first half only to fall apart in the third quarter. They did not suffer that kind of humiliation in this game.

This was a team victory. The Kings had eight players score in double figures and posted a season high 72 points off the bench. They shot 62.2-percent (51-for-82) from the floor for the game which is a season high. Sacramento shot 45.0-percent (9-for-20) from beyond the 3-point line.

The Kings had 32 assists and turned the ball over just 11 times for an outstanding 3-to-1 ratio. They recorded 11 steals and three blocked shots versus Dallas. Sacramento outscored the Mavs 68-46 in the paint.

This was a dominant performance against a team that is fighting for their playoff lives. If the Kings could have put together five to six games like this earlier in the season, they would fighting for a playoff berth.

Kings

The Kings leading scorer was – no it was not Cousins. Rookie Willie Cauley-Stein put up 21 points to lead the Kings in scoring. Cauley-Stein added seven rebounds and two assists to his line score. The Kings youngest big man also played some very tough defense in his 28-minutes of playing time.

DeMarcus Cousins did have another double-double game putting up 20 points and grabbing 12 rebounds to go with five assists and two steals. Cousins recorded those numbers in just 28 minutes on the floor.

Rajon Rondo had another double-double game scoring 11 points and dishing out 11 assists. Rondo turned the ball over just two times.

Darren Collison led the Kings scoring off the bench with 17 points. Collison shot 7-for-11 from the floor and added four assists plus one steal.

Seth Curry got his second consecutive start for Sacramento. The other Curry scored 14 points and added three assists and one steal. He scored all 14 of those points in the third quarter. Curry shot 4-for-4 from the floor, 2-for-2 from 3-point land and 4-for-4 from the free throw line.

Ben McLemore returned to the line up after having been out due to a finger tip injury. The shooting guard added 14 points hitting on 5-of-9 shots.

Casspi and Koufos scored 10 points each. Rudy Gay scored nine while Quincy Acy added seven points.

Mavericks

Dirk Nowitzki failed to dominate the game for Dallas. He scored 14 points but shot just 6-for-15 from the field. Nowitzki never seemed to get into the flow of the game on Sunday.

Guard Raymond Felton led the scoring for the Mavs with his 15 points. Felton also had five assists and two steals.

J.J. Barea put up 14 points. Former Warrior David Lee scored 12 points off the bench.

The Mavericks shot a respectable 47.7-percent (42-for-88) for the game. Dallas went 8-for-24 from behind the 3-point arc.

Up next

The Kings have to play the second game of a back-to-back on Monday night in Portland versus the playoff bound Trail Blazers. Sacramento is 3-14 in the second games of back-to-backs this season.

The Mavericks also have a back-to-back scheduled as they play the Nuggets on Monday night in Denver.

Sacramento Kings Thursday night game wrap up: Kings end four game skid in Dallas, win 104-101

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

picture credit Ronda Churchill/AP

Wednesday night in Dallas was an important match up for the Sacramento Kings. The team headed into the night on a four gaming losing streak and a 22 game losing streak on the Mavs’ home court. Overall, the Kings put in a tremendous team effort and were able to defeat the Western Conference’s sixth seed, Dallas Mavericks, 104-101.

Rudy Gay was in the starting line up for the Kings who played tough against Dallas in the first quarter. The Kings’ only flaw was five turnovers but they did a great job of rebounding and passing the ball. Rajon Rondo had four of the Kings’ eight assists in the quarter as he headed back to Dallas.

Sacramento struggled with the three ball to start the game, 0-7, but managed to stay in it. Nobody on the Kings scored more than four points and the Mavs got a nice first quarter out of David Lee. After one, the Mavs led Sacramento, 24-19.

The Kings played an even better second quarter. Marco Belinelli came alive with eight points to start the quarter for the Kings, who would go on an 11-4 run. Sacramento moved the ball extremely well throughout the half, but best of all they played great defense. The Kings did not allow the Mavs to get inside and forced Dallas to shoot out on the perimeter, who shot 1-11 from beyond the arc at the half.

At the half, the Kings held a 50-45 and shot well in the half. The team did a better job with the ball, only one turnover in the second quarter. DeMarcus Cousins and Rondo had a team high with eight points apiece with Rondo adding seven assists.

The Kings did much of the same in the third quarter as the second.

The Kings kept the momentum from the second quarter.With 7:38 remaining,  Ben McLemore  had a fast break jam causing a timeout by Dallas with the Kings up 60-55. Out of the timeout, Sacramento went on another run, 7-2, which finished with a sweet McLemore crossover who nailed a three off the dribble. Dallas was forced to call another timeout. The Mavs did answer back with eight straight points of their own

The third was a very clean half four both teams and Chandler Parson kept finding a way to score for the Mavs. Through three, Sacramento was able to shoot over 50% from the field and hold their lead, 73-69. The quarter was pretty even and both teams had 46 points in the paint. The Kings defense was still very solid, however.

In the fourth, the Kings went on another run, 7-2, to start the quarter off. The run would become an 11-2 run in a little less than four minutes. Belinelli was once again clutch for the Kings as he hit a three to put Sacramento up, 89-76, as Dallas took another time out.

The Mavs were able to make a push and after being down by 14 at one point, were only down by five with a little over a minute left to play. Unfortunately, the Kings could not make a free throw to save their life. At the 35 second mark, Cousins was fouled and missed both free throws. Darren Collison was fouled 12 second later and went one for two at the charity stripe to lead 102-97. Dirk Nowitzki scored very quickly to cut the lead to three.

Belinelli was fouled and missed both free throws. On the second miss, the Kings fought for the rebound and the ball squirted out. Both teams scrambled for the loose ball and Collison came up with it and fouled.

Collison finally put down two free throws for the Kings to go up 104-99 with four ticks remaining. Nowitzki was able to put in a late lay-up for a final score 104-101.

Many Kings player had great games. Cousins finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Rondo notched 18 points and tallied 12 assists.

Off the bench, Collison had 14 points and Belinelli added 16. Belinelli appears to be coming out of his season slump and was a huge spark for Sacramento. The Kings shot the ball extremely well shooting at 52.5% although their three pointers were mostly off. Parson finished with 28 points in the game but the Kings defense was able to hold on and they closed out a fourth quarter for the victory.

The Kings are now 25-35 and will head to San Antonio on Saturday. The team faces off against the Spurs, who clinched their 19th consecutive playoff berth in their last game. Tipoff starts at 5 p.m. as the Kings look to redeem a loss to San Antonio from a couple weeks ago.

Next 5 games pivotal for the Kings

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

memphis - kings

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The dim light you can see in the west is the Kings playoff hopes setting on the horizon. Sacramento is currently in tenth place in the NBA Western Conference Playoff standings. They are four games behind Houston who is in the eighth and final playoff spot.

The Kings have lost three consecutive games at home to San Antonio, the Los Angeles Clippers and Oklahoma City – all playoff teams. The Kings inability to create home court advantage has been devastating to their playoff hopes.

In his postgame press conference on Monday night, Kings head coach George Karl pointed out that his team has been playing some of its best basketball on the road. When he made that statement, it sounded like Karl was trying to convince himself that there is still hope for his team to make the postseason.

The team will need to play great basketball if they are to survive this four-game road trip. The Kings will play in Memphis, Dallas, San Antonio and New Orleans.

The Kings are a combined 1-7 versus the four teams this season. Their only win came over Dallas in Sacramento back on November 30th.

To make matters worse, the Kings will come home after the four road games to host “King James” and the Cleveland Cavaliers on March 9th.

The best scenario for the Kings would be to finish the road trip 2-2 for the four games. The Memphis and New Orleans contests should be winnable games for the team.

Memphis is without Marc Gasol who is out for the season due to a fractured foot. Even without Gasol, the Grizzlies are going to be a playoff team. They are currently 35-24 on the season and are in fifth place in the Western Conference. Sacramento will have to start fast and finish strong to beat Memphis.

A win in Dallas is going to be tough for the Kings. The game is second game of a back-to-back for the team. Sacramento is 2-12 in the second game of back-to-backs this season.

The Spurs are on a five game winning streak and have lost only nine for the season. The best the Kings can hope for is to have San Antonio rest one or two of their starters to give Sacramento a fighting chance.

That brings us to the final game of the road trip in New Orleans. There is no reason for the Kings not to come away with victory from the Crescent City. The Pelicans are 23-35 on the year and in 11th place in the West. The Kings will need to play some top-notch perimeter defense to shutdown Ryan Anderson – the 3-point making machine that killed them on their last visit to NOLA.

In order to make the playoffs, it is going to take 37 to 41 wins. Looking a best case scenario of 37 wins being the magic number – the Kings need post a 13-11 record over the final 24 games. To say that is a tall order is to make an understatement about the Kings chances.

The next five games will make or break the Kings chances of making the playoffs. The Kings schedule will get easier later in March but later will be to late to make a playoff run.

 

 

Kings come up short versus Dallas 93-91

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

Image

Photo credit: Garrett Ellwood

By Charlie O. Mallonee

Heading into Sunday’s game with the Dallas Mavericks, the Kings had to answer two big questions. First, how would they bounce back after being humiliated by the Warriors 102-69 on Friday night? Second, how would play versus Dallas – a team in a three-way fight for the final two spots in the Western Conference Playoff race?

The Kings did bounce back from Friday night in a big way. Sacramento took Dallas down to the wire but ultimately came up short losing to the Mavericks 93-91.

After the game, Kings Head Coach Michael said, “It’s real simple. We’ve been in a lot of close games this year and we have to find a way to stop beating ourselves.” Malone was frustrated with his team’s rebounding and lack of second-chance points.

The Kings defense held Dallas to just 40.4-percent (36 for 89) shooting for the game but allowed the Mavs to shoot 41.9-percent (13 for 31) from beyond the 3-point line. Dallas hit five of those 3-pointers coming down the stretch in the fourth quarter which propelled them to the win.

The Kings were much improved on the ball handling side. They committed just 13 turnovers and recorded 21 assists. The problem for Sacramento was the 13 turnovers resulted in 21 points for the Mavericks. Dallas scored more than one-half of their points on turnovers and 3-point conversions.

The Kings were led by Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins. Gay was the leading scorer in the game with 32 points, and he added eight assists. Cousins recorded his 49th double-double putting up 28 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Gay and Cousins put the team on their backs and tried to carry them to victory.

Ray McCallum led the Kings on the point for the seventh straight game as Isaiah Thomas was still unavailable on Sunday. McCallum played all but 19-seconds of the game. He scored eight points and added nine assists. McCallum also had four rebounds, three steals and one blocked shot. He turned the ball over just three times.

Travis Outlaw was active all game and hit two key 3-point baskets in the final period to keep the Kings in contention for the win.

As a team the Kings shot 47.4-percent (36 for 76) from the field. They shot just 27.8-percent for 3-pointers. Sacramento shot 70.0-percent (14 for 20) from the free throw line. It was a game where literally one 3-point basket or three additional free throw conversions wins the game for the Kings.

The Mavericks were led by former Warrior Monta Ellis. Ellis scored 23 points off 19 shots, hit two 3-pointers, grabbed four rebounds and recorded four assists. Vince Carter had a productive game scoring 17 points in just 24-minutes of play. Carter was four of nine from 3-point land. Dirk Nowitzki put up 15 points on 17 shots in the game. Jose Calderon added 14 points that included four 3-pointers.

The Mavericks turned the ball over 10 times and allowed just eight points off those turnovers. Dallas out-rebounded the Kings 45-40.

The Mavericks record improves to 47-31 with the victory and has them in seventh place in Western Conference Playoff standings. Dallas now has a two game lead over eighth place Phoenix.

Dallas Head Coach Rick Carlisle said after the game,” We knew it was going to be a dog fight but the good thing is that we stayed together.  Dirk Nowitzki came in and made some big free throws at the end, but they came down and got a returned shot at one point. We’re happy with the win but we need to do much better.”

The Kings have five games remaining in the 2013-14 season and three of them are home games. Up next for the Kings is the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday in Sacramento. The Kings will be trying to avoid the season series sweep as the Thunder have won the previous three meetings. Sacramento will then go on the road to take on the Trail Blazers in Portland on Thursday. The Kings are 1-2 on the season versus the Blazers. Sacramento will then head to Los Angeles to face the Clippers on Saturday before heading home to host the Minnesota Timberwolves next Sunday.

Peja Stojakovic was in the house on Sunday afternoon as the Kings continue to reconnect with the star players from the past.

Warriors remain hot, saddle Mavericks for fifth straight win

Published on by jhawkes51Leave a comment

By Joe Hawkes

OAKLAND — The Golden State Warriors haven’t been just on a roll since the All-Star break, but they are serving notice that they will be a factor come playoff time.

Ask the Dallas Mavericks.

Golden State had five players score in double figures helping the Warriors slow down the Mavericks, 108-85 Tuesday night at Oracle Arena. The Warriors picked up their fifth straight win, and improved to 10-2 since the All-Star break, tied with the San Antonio Spurs (10-2) for tops in the NBA.

Jordan Crawford led Golden State with 19 points and led a Warriors bench that outscored the reserves for Dallas 53-34. Harrison Barnes also scored in double figures with 13 points off the bench.

Klay Thompson scored 14 points on 6 of 10 shooting, and Stephen Curry added 10 points, but was 4 for 12 from the floor (1 for 5 on 3s). David Lee scored six points, but grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds in 29 minutes. Golden State has made it a habit of outscoring their opponents in the third quarter.

In the last two games, the Warriors have outscored their opponents 62-30 after halftime, which has been key to keeping teams down and making it difficult for a comeback.

The real story was the play of Andrew Bogut.

Bogut provided a little more offensive punch for the Warriors, scoring 15 points (all in the first half) to go along with 10 rebounds. Bogut was a huge part of holding the Mavericks to 37-percent shooting from the floor, and handing Dallas (38-27) their second loss to the Warriors this season.

Former Warrior Monta Ellis finished with 15 points and Jose Calderon added 13 points and five assists. Dirk Nowitzki had 12 points, but scored just four points in the first half and was defended well by Lee for the majority of the game.

Dallas is having a hard time just holding on to the eighth seed in the Western Conference playoffs and this loss further weakens their grip. Dallas leads the Phoenix Suns by 1.5 games in the standings with 17 games to go in the regular season.

This was a win that the Warriors needed, especially with the big game in Los Angeles against the Clippers Wednesday.

Golden State has won two of the three matchups against their Pacific Division foe this season, but the Clippers are hotter than the Warriors, winning their last eight games.

 

Kings fall short in Dallas 107-103

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

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Photo credit: Glenn James

By Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings went to Dallas on Friday night looking to end a five game losing streak. In the association, the toughest place to attempt to break a losing streak is on the road. The road is brutal to visiting teams in the NBA. It was brutal to the Kings on Friday as they lost to Dallas 107-103.

The game versus the Mavericks was the sixth consecutive contest the Kings have played without the injured (ankle) DeMarcus Cousins. Sacramento is 0-6 without their star center in the lineup. Yes, they do miss their big man.

The number one problem for the Kings has been a lack of consistent defense. The Kings played strong defense in the first quarter holding the Mavericks to just 24 points. In the second quarter the defense broke down and Dallas scored 30 points. Sacramento came out in the third period and held the Mavs to just 21 points. But in the fourth quarter, the Kings’ defense went dormant as they allowed Dallas to put up 32 points. Head coach Michael Malone described his team as having “no defensive mindset” in the final quarter.

The Kings committed 14 turnovers to just 4 for the Mavericks. Dallas outscored the Kings in the paint 50-44. The Mavericks scored 16 fast break points to just 5 for the Kings. Michael Malone said, “It’s very hard to win on the road when you beat yourself.”

Sacramento shot 50.7% (38-75) from the field while Dallas shot just 47.5% (38-80). The Kings shot 87.0% (20-23) from the free throw line while the Mavericks shot 80.6% (29-36) from the stripe. The Kings out-rebounded the Mavs 39-37. Sacramento played a strong game. It was lapses of defense in the second and fourth quarters that cost them the game.

Rudy Gay led all scorers with 35 points on just 16 shots. He was 15 of 17 from the free throw line. Gay posted 12 rebounds giving him a double-double. Isaiah Thomas put up 19 points and dished out six assists in 42 minutes of playing time.

Dirk Nowitzki led Dallas with 34 points. He was 11 for 11 from the free throw line. Monta Ellis added 20 points. Jose Calderon scored 14 points while Brandan Wright put up 10 points.

The Mavericks’ record improved to 27-21 on the season with the win. The loss dropped the Kings’ record to 15-31.

Sacramento has no time rest and regroup as they have to play the Spurs in San Antonio on Saturday night. The Kings will need to play four quarters of defense just to stay in the game with the Spurs.

Curry’s late game heroics lift Warriors over Mavericks, 95-93

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By Gabe Schapiro

On Wednesday night at Oracle Arena the Golden State Warriors (13-10) made another late comeback at home, this time toppling the Dallas Mavericks (13-10), 95-93. A little over a week ago the Warriors overcame a 27-point deficit to beat the Toronto Raptors. Tonight didn’t quite match that historic effort, coming back from being down “only” 18, but it was another one that anyone in attendance won’t be forgetting anytime soon.

As has become an unfortunate habit of late, Golden State had a dreadful start. They began the game shooting an abysmal 4-for-21 from the field, and had some butter fingers, turning the ball over often. After the first quarter they were already facing a seven-point deficit, kept that low only because Dallas was only slightly less horrible.

In the second quarter the Warriors shooting improved ever so slightly, but by halftime they had already racked up 10 turnovers, and were still just scoring at a 39.5% clip. Andrew Bogut was their biggest saving grace. He was a beast down low, blocking two big shots of the “woah” variety, and hauling in 12 rebounds. At one point in the second quarter the Mavericks held their biggest lead of the night with 18, but towards the end Golden State started chipping away.

Coming out of the locker room the Warriors defense woke up. They played with a much higher sense of urgency, and as a result the buckets started hitting as well. They still didn’t look great, but it was far from the dreadful performance witnessed in the first. Heading into the final 12 minutes they had cut the Dallas lead down to a much more manageable six points.

It should be noted that up until this point Stephen Curry was, for the most part, having one of his worst games of the year. He wasn’t making much and he was turning the ball over often. In the fourth quarter, that all changed.

That sweet stroke of Curry’s can only stay cold for so long, and when it mattered most he caught fire. With five minutes remaining a Curry jumper finally brought the Warriors back to a tie game. From their both sides traded blows and traded their share of the lead.

But on this night Curry just simply wouldn’t be denied. With 46 seconds left the game again stood at a stalemate, 93-93. The Mavericks missed their chance to win it, and with 1.5 seconds left, of course the ball went to Curry. And Curry would not miss his chance.

A Curry pump-fake got his defender, Shawn Marion, to leave his feet, giving him all the opening he needed to nail a 19-foot jumper. That gave the Warriors their second consecutive huge comeback win at home.

Curry finished with a game-high 33 points, to go along with 10 assists. 17 of those points came in the fourth. David Lee also posted a double-double, 15 points and 11 boards. Bogut finished with six points, and a season-high 18 rebounds. Draymond Green played a big 28 minutes off the bench, filling the stat sheet with nine points, five rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and a steal.

In the losing effort Dirk Nowitzki had 21 points and seven rebounds. Monta Ellis, in front of his former home, chipped in 21 points and five assists.

As exciting as these games are, the Warriors need to work on having better starts. Miracle comebacks can’t always be counted on. They will look to do so this Friday against the tough Houston Rockets.