Tag: Rajon Rondo

Careless with the ball, Kings still nab victory

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

picture credit: Associated Press

SACRAMENTO- Flashback Friday took place at Sleep Train Arena with the old school court on display. The Kings took the fans back in time as well by playing a lot more competitive basketball and picking up a victory. The win came in big part to tremendous play from DeMarcus Cousins, Rajon Rondo and Rudy Gay. Darren Collison was a huge spark off the bench. After a ton of talks of firings and trades prior and during the All Star break, the Kings pulled out an important win.

In the first quarter of play, the Kings and Nuggets went back and forth for the majority of the quarter. Sacramento played better defensively, but both teams were very careless with the ball. Sacramento’s five first quarter turnovers hurt them as they lead to nine points for Denver.

Luckily, the Kings played some better defense and their All Star center DeMarcus Cousins picked up right where he left off. Cousins got to the line six times in the quarter and nailed all six shots from the charity stripe. Rudy Gay showed some confidence in his game by totaling eight first quarter points, 2-3 from the field, with both coming from beyond the arc.

Rajon Rondo also sunk two three pointers. The Kings shot uncharacteristically well beyond the three-point line, 5-7, in the first quarter.

Rondo and Denver center Jusuf Nurkic each picked up a technical after a little shoving match and trash talk coming off a Ben McLemore offensive foul.

Sacramento capped off the quarter with a three-point buzzer beater from Darren Collison off a Rondo assist. Through one quarter, the Kings led Denver, 31-24. The Kings held the Nuggets to less than 30 points, for the first time in Sacramento’s last ten games.

After a nice first quarter, the Kings scored five points in the first minute of the second quarter to go up, 36-24. But soon after, the Nuggets found some offense of there own for a 10-2 run in a minute and 20 seconds.

 

The Kings took a timeout to slow down the Nuggets. Out of the timeout, the Kings went out scored Denver 17-8 with 5:54, which put them up 55-42 with 5:54 left in the half. The run was capped off by a monstrous slam by Cousins who was fouled. Cousins was fouled on the dunk and made the free throw for a three-point play.

Collison made a technical free throw after Nuggets’ head coach Michael Malone picked up a technical. Malone chirped at the refs and his frustration led to the tech.

The Kings were careless with the ball yet again with eight turnovers leading to 11 Denver points, but they did capitalize off Denver’s six turnovers. The Kings scored 11 points as well and their hot shooting kept them up on the Nuggets. Sacramento shot 59.5% from the field and went 10-13 from behind the arc in the first half. Although they kept shooting well from three-point range, the Kings got back into the paint, adding 20 points in the paint in the second quarter and a total of 26 in the first half. The Kings led the Nuggets 70-57 through the first half of play.

A dominant offensive performance came from Cousins, who scored 24 points, 8-11, and grabbed eight boards in the half. Gay also shot the ball well, 5-9 from the field, 4-4 from beyond the three-point line, for 16 points. Rondo and Collison, who came off the bench, each totaled 12 points, while Rondo added 6 assists. Denver’s Danillo Gallinari had the team high for the Nuggets with 17 points in the half and Joffrey Lauvergne had 13.

After an incredible offensive first half, the Kings slowed down at an incredible rate in the third quarter. The team totaled a measly 18 points with Cousins scoring nine of those 18. Cousins continued to get to the line, 5-5 from the charity stripe in the quarter. The quarter was slow and the Kings managed to turn the ball over five more times. With the score 79-72, the Kings pulled out a 7-0 run to go up 86-72. The Nuggets only totaled 20 points with eight of those from Gallinari.

With a quiet third quarter from both teams, the Kings led 88-77 through three.

The fourth quarter showed more offense especially for the Nuggets who found their stride. Denver was able to keep things close by putting up 33 in the quarter, but Rondo came up big for the Kings. Rondo hustled really hard, added eight points and six assists in the fourth quarter. Rondo was clutch going 4-6 from the free throw line late in the ball game. The Kings were able to come out with a win after the break over the Nuggets. The final score was 116-110.

Cousins finished with 37 points,12-20 from the field and a career high 20 rebounds. Cousins also went 12-15 from the line as he got into the paint a lot and Denver’s bigs played him tough. The Kings totaled 56 points in the paint.

“[Cousins] was flat out amazing.” Collison said “They couldn’t stop him.”

Rondo had a big game and was especially important down the stretch. He finished with 24 points, 8-16 from the field, 10 assists and 9 rebounds.

“Rajon had great control of the game down the stretch” said head coach George Karl. “And understanding who were playing and what we had to do to be successful.”

Gay matched Rondo with 24 points and off the bench Collison totaled 17 points.

The Kings offensive was once again very good, except for the third quarter. The team made no three pointers in the second half, which slowed their scoring down quite a bit. The only real flaw of the game was the team’s 22 turnovers that turned into 34 points for Denver. The defense was much better and the Nugget’s high points total mostly came from carelessness as they scored 26 fast break points.

“We really didn’t go over much offense [during practice]. We basically just [practiced] a lot of defense.” Gay said “Our offense is going to be a little sloppy.”

On Tuesday, the Kings will face the Nuggets in Denver. They will need to stop Lauvergne who scored 22 and Gallinari who scored 27 points. These next stretch of games are incredibly crucial as Sacramento faces playoff caliber opponents. The next few weeks will say a lot about this team and it looks like they are ready to make a statement.

Kings lose again; BOS 128 SAC 119

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
NBA: Sacramento Kings at Boston Celtics
Photo Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

It was not a super Sunday for the Sacramento Kings. In fact, it was more like Groundhog Day. The Kings lost to the Boston Celtics 128-119 on Sunday. If that score sounds familiar, it was the same identical final score of the Kings loss in Brooklyn on Friday night.

The Kings have now allowed their last eight opponents to score 100 or more points against them. As it has been noted, the Kings score enough points to win. They cannot get enough stops not to lose.

It was another disastrous first quarter for the Kings versus Boston. Sacramento gave up 46 first quarter points to the Celtics. They trailed Boston 46-37 after the first period.

If giving up 46 first quarter points was not bad enough, Sacramento allowed Boston to score 74 first half points. The Celtics led the game 74-58 at the half.

The Kings have consistently been digging themselves into a hole early in games. The team starts slow and then tries to overcome the bad start in the second half. The problem with that approach is it takes so much energy to get back into the game that there is nothing left in the tank to finish the game. That is what happened again on Sunday.

The Kings played a much better game on offense and defense in the second half. They created turnovers and transition situations. Sacramento outscored the Celtics 61-54 in the second half but it was too little too late.

When asked what the team can do to start games faster, Kings head coach George Karl said the coaching staff is “pulling our hair out” trying to come up with a solution.

Karl also pointed out that there is very little practice time available during this time of the season. Karl said the Kings need to “simplify” things. In other words, the team needs to get back to the basics like playing defense.

Multiple sources reported that George Karl’s job was on the line after the humiliating loss in Brooklyn. If those reports are true, the loss in Boston on Sunday did not help Karl’s cause to keep his job.

If things were not bad enough, the Kings have to play second half of back-to-back road games against Cleveland on Monday night. It is a losing team’s worst nightmare to have to face LeBron James and the Cavs when trying to stop a losing streak.

In this reporter’s opinion, firing George Karl will only add instability to a very unstable basketball organization. That being said, I do not believe George Karl will be the Kings head coach when the campaign continues after the All-Star Break.

Kings

DeMarcus Cousins led the Kings scoring attack on Sunday. Cousins scored 31 points but had to take 25 shots to score those points. He pulled down seven rebounds and dished out six assists. Cousins also picked up another technical foul in the first quarter of the game.

Rajon Rondo recorded another double-double against his old team. Rondo scored 14 points and distributed 15 assists to go with six steals.

Marco Belinelli made another start versus the Celtics. He scored 16 points but it required 17 shots to score those points. Belinelli was just 2-for-8 from 3-point range.

Willie Cauley-Stein had a solid game scoring 15 points while shooting 7-for-9 from the floor in 23-minutes of playing time.

James Anderson started at forward for Rudy Gay who was sidelined with a sprained ankle.

Sacramento had a 49.5 field goal percentage for the game. The Kings posted 32 assists and turned the ball over just 14 times. They were out-rebounded by Boston 49-32.

Celtics

Guard Avery Bradley led the Celtics scoring with 25 points. Bradley shot 6-for-7 from “downtown”.

Former Kings and first time All-Star Isaiah Thomas added 22 points of his own. Thomas also had nine assists.

Boston shot 56.0-percent from the floor (51-for-91) and 54.2-percent (13-for-24) from beyond the 3-point line. The Celtics went 13-for-15 (86.7-percent) from the free throw line.

 

No defense equals no win for Sacramento; Kings lose to Nets 128-119

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
NBA: Sacramento Kings at Brooklyn Nets
Photo Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Opposing teams have figured out how to defeat the Sacramento Kings. First, you have to start fast because the Kings are slow to start playing defense. Second, shoot the 3-ball because the Sacramento perimeter defense is non-existent.

The Brooklyn Nets came out fast in the first quarter on Friday night against the Kings. The Nets put up 33 points in the first period. In fact, the Nets scored at least 30 points in three of the four quarters in the game. This scoring barrage was from a team that averages just 95 points per game.

The Nets also came prepared to shoot from long distance. Brooklyn connected on 18 of 28 (64.3-percent) 3-point attempts versus the Kings. Bojan Bogdanovic hit on 7-0f-9 3-point shots while Joe Johnson went 5-for-7 from downtown. Donald Sloan shot 4-for-5 from long range.

Brooklyn (13-38) – who had lost five consecutive games – shot 55.8-percent (48-for-86) from the field. Sacramento (21-29) never found its defensive footing in the contest.

George Karl described his team as having a “shootout mentality” rather than a defensive mentality. Karl went on to add that things felt “very empty” after the game.

The fact is the Kings can score enough points to win but they cannot stop enough points to keep from losing.

Sacramento has now lost six of their last seven games. This game versus the Nets was supposed to be one of the most winnable contests on this four game road trip that includes games in Boston and Cleveland before the All-Star break.

It is very apparent that something has to change for the Kings and it has to happen quickly.

DeMarcus Cousins was very cryptic after the game saying his team has a “big issue” to deal with internally. He was clear that the issue went beyond energy and effort.

Even with the loss, the Kings are just three games out of the number eight spot in the Western Conference playoff race. The potential of the playoffs may just be an afterthought if the Kings cannot find solutions to whatever is ailing them in the locker room and on the court.

Kings

Darren Collison led the Kings in scoring by putting up 25 points in 25 minutes of playing time off the bench. Collison went 7-for-9 from the floor including two 3-point baskets. He was also an impressive 9-for-9 from the free throw line.

DeMarcus Cousins posted a triple-double against the Nets. Cousins scored 24 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out 10 assists in the game. He was a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the 3-point arc.

Rajon Rondo had a double-double game as he scored 15 points and distributed 15 assists. Rondo had three steals and turned the ball over just two times.

Willie Cauley-Stein added 16 points, Marco Belinelli 13, Caron Butler 8 and Omri Casspi 7.

Rudy Gay scored just two points in the game. Gay went down early in first quarter with a twisted ankle. Karl had no update on Gay’s condition after the game.

Sacramento shot 50.6-percent (45-for-89) from the floor hitting on 8 of 26 3-point shots. The Kings shot 21-for-22 from the foul line. They had 30 assists and just 11 turnovers.

All of these numbers support the premise that the Kings score enough to win. They just cannot keep the other team from scoring more.

Nets

Joe Johnson scored a season-high 27 points to lead the Nets scoring attack. Johnson shot 11-for-16 from the floor including 5-for-7 from downtown. Johnson did not make one trip to the free throw line in the game.

Center Brook Lopez posted 26 points in the game. Lopez made it a double-double game by hauling in 12 rebounds.

Bojan Bogdanovic scored a season-high 23 points against the Kings. He shot 8-for-10 from the field and 7-for-9 from long range. Bogdanovic also did not make a trip to the charity stripe in the contest.

Donald Sloan had a season-high 17 points versus the Kings. A team cannot allow that many season high scoring performances from the opposition and expect to win.

Up next

The Kings will return to action on Sunday with an early game in Boston. The Celtics (30-22) beat the Cavs 104-103 in Cleveland on Friday evening. The Kings – Celtics game will tip-off at 10:00 AM Pacific Time.

The Nets play the second game of a back-to-back against the Sixers in Philadelphia on Saturday.

 

 

 

 

Kings fall short in loss to Bulls

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

Photo credit (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

SACRAMENTO- A Chicago Bulls team without All Star Jimmy Butler gives opponents a much better chance at winning, or at least competiting. Butler sat out Wednesday night’s ball game with left knee tendinitis. The Kings did do a good job of sticking around with the Bulls, but allowed E’Twaun Moore to tear up the defense as if he was Butler.

Sacramento once again allowed a player who never really impacts games to get a career high in points. The Kings had a lot of sloppy play and their defense was not consistently strong enough to ever allow them to over come the Bulls. Missed free throws cost the Kings as well especially when it counted. Even with another monster game from DeMarcus Cousins, who was honored as an All Star prior to the game, Sacramento could not overcome the Bulls. The Kings (21-27) lost to the Bulls (27-21), 107-102, in a tightly contested match up in Sacramento at Sleep Train Arena.

The Kings lacked urgency to start the game. Sacramento looked slow and the Bulls took advantage, especially Moore. Moore scored ten of Chicago’s first 13 points causing Sacramento to take a timeout at the 7:02 mark. Moore would finish the quarter with 13 points, a point shy of his career high.

Marco Belinelli’s shot started to look better, scoring six points in the quarter, as he got another start. The Kings were able to hang around in the quarter in big part to DeMarcus Cousins, who scored eight points in a row later in the quarter causing the Bulls to call a timeout with Chicago up by eight. The Kings’ defense caused five turnovers, but could not find a way to stop the Bulls from scoring as Chicago shot 57.1% from the field. The Bulls did an excellent job behind the three-point line, going six for eight.

The Bulls took advantage of the Kings’ four turnovers with nine points off those turnovers. Allowing the Bulls to shoot at a high percentage had the Kings down, 35-24, after one quarter of play. For the fifth straight game, the Kings allowed their opponent to score 30 or more points in the first quarter.

“It’s a nightmare,” said Coach George Karl.  “I’ve never had this many games on your home court come out flat.”

Coming off of a sluggish first quarter, Darren Collison helped pick up the pace for Sacramento. Off the bench, Collison finished the half with 13 points, eight of those from the second quarter. The Kings’ defense did a better job against the Bulls’ offense and found some of their own as well.

With 4:35 left in the second quarter, Omri Casspi and Bobby Portis received a technical foul each after the pair were yapping at one another over a prior play.

Down by four, Sacramento looked to keep the game close but the Bulls went on a 6-0 run to go up by ten as Chicago continued their good ball movement with a little under three minutes to play in the half.

Belinelli scored six more points in the second quarter. Belinelli hit two three-pointers for a total of 12 points in the half. Belinelli’s threes helped keep the Kings within reach with one of those threes coming from a Cousins’ screen and put the score at 60-57. Belinelli’s three would be the last field goal of the half with the Bulls leading the Kings, 60-57 after one half of play.

Omri Casspi and Bobby Portis  received a double technical after the pair were yapping at one another over a prior play.

Moore eclipsed his prior career high of 14 points with 15 in the first half for a halftime high. Cousins scored 14 points for a team high. Chicago had ten second chance points in the first half, as they out rebounded the Kings, 26-18. Chicago crashed the boards much harder than the Kings, but with 28 points in the paint Sacramento kept it close.

The Kings started the third quarter off with a 5-0 run, giving them their first lead since early in the first quarter. But the Bulls followed it up with a 5-0 run of their own. The Kings got to 66 points, which was later changed to 64 as a Rudy Gay field goal was changed to a shot clock violation. After that point, Sacramento turned the ball over on five straight possessions, but luckily the Bulls did not do so well either. Throughout the quarter, Sacramento inched closer and closer, but the eight third quarter turnovers never gave them a chance to regain the lead.

Both teams did very little offensively, with Chicago scoring 20 and Sacramento scoring 18. The Kings did a much better job of rebounding the ball with four offensive boards and 14 total in the quarter. Gay scored six points on 3-6 shooting for a total of ten, looking much better in the third quarter after foul trouble in the first half.

Moore continued to play well out of the break with seven points in the third. Cousins also had a big quarter with eight points, as him and Moore tied for a game high with 22 points. After a lot of careless basketball, the Bulls still maintained their lead, 80-75 through three.

The fourth quarter came down to the wire although the Bulls started out the quarter on a 6-0 run. Again, the Kings were able to stay in the game and went up by as many as ten in the quarter. With a little over three and a half minutes to play, Chicago was up 99-90 over the Kings. But Belinelli’s improved shooting came in clutch for Sacramento as they got the lead down to four, 105-101, after he hit a three pointer while getting fouled.

Belinelli missed the free throw, but Cousins grabbed the board and was fouled. Cousins only made one free throw to cut Chicago’s lead to three with 45 seconds in the game. Sacramento kept getting stops and had possession down three with 17.9 seconds.

Out of a timeout, the Kings drew up a play to get Cousins the ball inside for a quick two, but Boogie could not convert on two separate tries. The Kings fouled Moore with 10.4 seconds left and the game seemed basically over. However, Moore missed both free throws and Sacramento got the rebound with nine seconds remaining. Cousins got fouled and missed the first free throw, letting out great frustration afterwards. Boogie missed the second shot on purpose and got called for a lane violation.

Pau Gasol, who finished with 16 points and 13 boards, made two free throws to close out the game and give the Bulls the victory, 107-102. Rudy Gay fouled out by fouling Gasol.

Derrick Rose had a solid fourth quarter with eight points, totaling 21 points and adding nine assists with six boards. Moore finished with a career high 24 points as he filled the shoes of Butler tonight.

Cousins added another double double on the season, 30 points and 11 rebounds, finishing with a game high. Cousins admitted to being banged up after a very physical game, but is still ready to go. Belinelli scored 18 points for Sacramento, 7-14 from the field.

Off the bench, Collison scored 19 points but did not see much playing time in the second half. Rajon Rondo added nine assists for the Kings, who continue to score well in the paint, but have lacked good starts in games.

The defense got better, but Chicago shot 52.4% from the behind the arc, which was a  big difference maker as well as their 19 fast break points. Both teams finished with 17 turnovers in a very sloppy game.

“Starts. Turnovers hurt us tonight, transition defense hurt us tonight,” Cousins said.

The Kings have now lost five of their last six games and are looking for answers with four games left before the All Star break.

“I would probably say our only pattern is our effort coming out early on in games. We’ve got to find a way to improve that,” Cousins said when asked about characteristics in their losses.

The Kings, now 21-28, will need to practice what they preach heading into the last four games to gain momentum as they near the break. On Friday, Sacramento will take on the Brooklyn Nets on the road as they look to get the roller coaster season back in their favor with some much needed road wins.

“We’ve got to get three, we have to,” Cousins said.

Worn Down Kings lose, 112-97, in Portland

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

Picture by (Steve Dykes/AP Photo)

SACRAMENTO- DeMarcus Cousins has been a treat to watch, notching career highs in points in back to back games. 48 in a win against the Pacers and 56, a Sacramento franchise high, against the Hornets in a double overtime loss. But Boogie looked tired and struggled mightily tonight, which really hurt the Kings who were without Rudy Gay who suffered a corneal abrasion in last night’s ball game. Nobody for the Kings stepped up and there was not much from the bench besides Marco Belinelli, giving the Portland Trailblazers the victory, 112-97.

Early on, the Kings looked good with Rajon Rondo and Willie Cauley-Stein connecting on consecutive alley-oops for the team’s first two field goals. Rondo penetrated the defense well and did a nice job of getting open looks or easy baskets for his teammates, especially Cauley-Stein. Rondo tried to give a team who looked tired some early energy. The team’s ball movement was nice with nine team assists in the quarter.

Tied at 15, Cousins got called for a charge and Coach George Karl was not happy, picking up a technical foul. Once the Blazers knocked down the free throw, Portland never looked back and held the lead for the majority of the game afterwards. Both teams were not too careless with the ball and scored well in the paint as the Blazers led 33-29 at the end of the first. Nonetheless, the game still looked close.

As the second quarter got underway, Cousins frustration grew and Rondo and Cauley-Stein couldn’t continue their hot start. Rondo scored nine in the first and WCS notched eight. Cousins could not buy a basket from the field going 3-14 in the half, but getting to the line seven times and making six of the seven shots. The Kings played pretty good defense, but the Blazers found a way to shoot at a high percentage, 50% for the half. The Kings found a way to hang around even with their offensive struggles as Portland’s largest lead in the half was nine. Cousins had a half time high with 12 points and CJ McCollum had 11 to lead Portland.

With just under three minutes to play in the quarter, Cauley-Stein took a bump to the eye and headed to the locker room. Willie received stitches and donned a bandage on his eyebrow in the second half.

After a tough half of basketball, the Blazers held a six-point lead, 58-52.

In the third, the Blazers continued to shoot at a high percentage and the Kings faltered. Portland put up a 30-point quarter on 50% shooting. Every Blazers player who entered in the third scored, while the Kings shot at 40% and couldn’t get a bucket from their best player. Cousins only way of scoring was from the free throw line and in the quarter he went 2 of 8. The Kings were down seven at one point and could not score on possessions where they had a wide open look from Cousins and a couple of missed lay ups by Rondo. When the Kings failed to cut the lead to five, Portland attacked the Kings defense and went up by as many as 14 points. Missed free throws also kept the Kings from hanging around, 4-12 in third. With three quarters in the books, Portland led, 88-74.

The Trail Blazers started the fourth with a 10-4 run causing Sacramento to call a timeout. Portland’s offense continued to sizzle as they went up by as many as 22. With the lead very much out of reach, Karl took out Cousins, Rondo and Willie to give them some much needed rest after logging a ton of minutes the night before.

In garbage time, Seth Curry put up seven points and gave the Kings a little offense. The Kings turned the ball over six times in the quarter and after a good first quarter and mostly first half, slowed down. The Blazers took advantage of a tired Kings team to put themselves in line for the eighth seed, defeating Sacramento, 112-97. Portland came into tonight’s ball game a game behind the Kings for that eighth spot.

Myers Leonard frustrated Boogie big time and Cousins was absolutely drained. His legs weren’t quite under him, 4-21 on field goals and 9-17 from the free throw line. Cousins had a team high with 17 points. McCollum finished with a game high 18 points. The Blazers shot really well and the Kings did not shoot as well as they would have liked, 41.9%. Seven of Portland’s players scored in double figures, with their leader Damian Lilliard notching 15 points.

Rondo finished with 15 points and 11 assists for another double double as he played an excellent game, but just couldn’t get enough energy from the rest of the team. Belinelli finished with 14 points as his shot looked much better. Belinelli and the Kings hope that he can get his stroke back. Cauley-Stein finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots. Willie’s defense has been a huge plus for the Kings since his return.

The Kings have an off day tomorrow before they face the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday. Tomorrow will be a well deserved rest day as the team travels and hopefully Boogie will find his stride once again. After all, this is his first mediocre game of January, Big Cous has been dominant. The Kings have dropped two in a row now and will look to get back to their winning ways in January on Thursday at New Orleans.

Kings win fifth consecutive game behind Cousins 48 point performance

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
NBA: Indiana Pacers at Sacramento Kings
Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

By Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento – On Saturday night in Sleep Train Arena, it was DeMarcus Cousins’ world and the rest of us were privileged to live in it.

The Kings won their fifth consecutive game downing the Indiana Pacers 108-97 behind Cousins’ 48 points and 13 rebounds. Cousins literally controlled the paint on the offensive end of the floor fighting off two and three defenders on his way to the basket.

The Kings went on a 7-0 run to open the game and served notice that they had come to play and play hard. Sacramento led the game wire to wire as they posted their 20th win of the season.

A game that appeared to be a possible “cake walk” for the Kings turned into a battle on both ends of the floor. The Kings controlled the paint outscoring the Pacers 58-32 down low. The Pacers turned up their defense and held the Kings to 44.7-percent (38-for-85) shooting from the floor and causing Sacramento to turn the ball over 15 times resulting in 19 Indiana points.

Kings head coach George Karl said before the game that his team would have battle the very athletic hands of the Pacers. Indiana lived up to that billing making the Kings work hard for every point they scored after the opening run.

Sacramento also brought its defense to game. The Kings held the Pacers to just 41.9-percent (36-for-86) shooting from the floor. It was the second consecutive game that the Kings held their opponents under 100 points. Sacramento had averaged giving up 107.4 points per game coming into Saturday night’s contest.

The Kings had not won five consecutive games since October 31 to November 7,2014. Sacramento’s record now stands at 20-23. They are now 12-11 at home.

The loss caused Pacers record to fall to 23-21. Indiana has lost five of their last six games.

Kings

Cousins scored his career-high 48 points going 17-for-29 from the floor. He was 1-for-2 from 3-point range and 13-for-20 from the free throw line. Cousins recorded a double-double by grabbing 13 rebounds. He played a game-high 39 minutes.

Rajon Rondo posted another triple-double against the Pacers. Rondo scored 11 points, distributed 10 assists and pulled down 10 rebounds in the game. It was his sixth triple-double of the season and made Rondo the all-time leader in the Sacramento era in that category.

Willie Cauley-Stein played another strong game for Sacramento. He played 34 minutes scoring six points and recording 12 rebounds. Five of those rebounds were on the offensive end and extended possessions for the Kings.

Darren Collison scored 11 points, Kosta Koufos 9, Omri Casspi 8, Marco Belinelli 7, Ben McLemore 5 and James Anderson 3.

The Kings won their second consecutive game without Rudy Gay on floor. Gay missed the game due to a left heel contusion.

Pacers

Paul George led the Pacers scoring attack putting up 34 points. George shot 9-for-20 from the field but was 4-for-8 from beyond the 3-point arc. He also went 12-for-14 from the free throw line.

Center Jordan Hill scored 17 points and had 13 rebounds to make it a double-double game for him.

Monta Ellis scored 16 points while dishing out seven assists for the Pacers.

Lavoy Allen put up nine points, Myles Turner 11, George Hill 8 and Joe Young 2.

What they said after the game

Kings head coach George Karl called DeMarcus Cousins performance, “Pretty special. They kind of didn’t have an answer and they were letting us have almost everything. I think what Cuz didn’t do at a high level tonight was make the 3-ball. Even his mistakes or turnovers or his forced issues at times were still pretty powerful for us; kept the rhythm, kept the flow.”

Karl added, “His (Cousins) skills are off the chart, his hands, and his ability to put it on the floor and get to the rim. Defensively he’s good, maybe very good. He does all of the fundamental nature of the game of basketball at a high, high level.”

“Honestly I’m more happy about the win,” said Cousins after the game. “I’m glad I got a new career high, but I’m more happy about the way this team is playing. We’ve been through a lot this season – a lot of ups and downs, but we’re on the right path right now. I think we’re growing each and every game. Like I’ve been saying, my mindset is just playoffs.”

“Well they went to him (Cousins) every time down the floor for 48 straight minutes”, said Indiana head coach Frank Vogel. “You get 29 field goal attempts and 20 free throw attempts – that’s high usage. That’s what the analytics people call a high usage rate. Our top big man defender is out. Guys that were in there – our three bigs – battled, did the best they could, but he’s a big load. He’s a load and when he’s going to get touches every single time … he’s going to put up those kind of numbers.”

Up next

The Kings will be back on the floor Monday night when they host the Charlotte Hornets. The Hornets beat the Kings 127-122 in overtime on November 23, 2015.

Indiana heads home to host the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday.

Kings clip Hawks wings to win fourth straight

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

Photo by Steve Yeater/ AP Photo

SACRAMENTO – No Rudy Gay tonight, no problem. The Kings found a way to close out a game, even though they were up by 17 at one point. The team played well together, at least the starters did. The team shot poorly, but showed toughness and tenacity. With a half game lead over the Utah Jazz, the Kings looked to win a fourth straight over the Atlanta Hawks at Sleep Train Arena.

The first quarter was a back and forth contest but once again the Kings dominated the paint, helping them maintain a lead for most of the quarter. DeMarcus Cousins got off to a great start as he totaled 11 points and crashed the glass hard with eight rebounds. The Kings passed the ball well throughout the quarter by using the extra pass to find the best shot. Every starter scored in the quarter.

The Kings finished the quarter with nine assists, five of those assists coming from the smooth hands of Rajon Rondo. The team played much better defense as well causing four turnovers, but left Kyle Korver open on a couple occasions for two three point field goals. Willie Cauley-Stein’s presence was felt as he limited Paul Millsap to two points. Cauley-Stein’s tremendous athleticism has improved the team’s overall defense quite a bit. Sacramento totaled 16 boards to Atlanta’s six and finished the quarter ahead of the Hawks, 27-20.

In the second quarter, the Kings struggled mightily, shooting the ball at 30.4% and got off to a slow start. Luckily, the Hawks did not shoot that well either as both teams had very little offense. Cauley-Stein scored six in the quarter and finished with eight points in the quarter adding seven rebounds. Cousins finished the quarter with a double double, 13 points and 10 boards.

The Kings offense was disappointing in the quarter due to little ball movement. After doing a great job in the first, the ball stopped moving and the Kings players seemed to play a little too much one on one. As the Kings hit the glass hard, their dominance on the boards gave them nine second chance points in the first half. Boogie had a game high of 13 points in the half but nine turnovers helped the Hawks cut down the Kings lead to 3 at the half. Heading into the locker room, Sacramento led Atlanta 47-44. Millsap had a team high for the Hawks with nine points.

Out of the break, the Kings struck first but the Hawks answered quickly going up 50-49. The Kings then got some fire under their belts, going on a 18-0 run. The run started with a free throw by Boogie to tie up the game and the team kept going from there. Sacramento ran the court extremely well with nine fast break points.

The crowd went nuts when Ben McLemore hit a three pointer and took a bump, completing a four point play and putting up a 9-0 run. Casspi then hit a three pointer, followed by a Rondo lay up. The Hawks tried to end the run when Dennis Schröder had a fast break lay up, but DMC blocked him. The run was capped off with an awesome alley-oop pass from Rondo to McLemore that caused a thunderous roar throughout the arena.

The Hawks called a timeout and the Kings momentum dwindled. The Hawks ended the quarter on a 13-5 run after the time out, giving the Kings a 72-63 lead. The Kings ball movement was once again terrific, totaling seven team assists. Both teams still did not shoot well, the Hawks shot a miserable 35% in the quarter and the Kings defense helped them break out. The team caused seven turnovers for 14 of their 25 quarter points.

Up by nine to start the fourth quarter, the Kings needed a gritty, gutsy performance to hold on to the eight seed in the Western Conference. Sacramento did show guts, but the second unit allowed the Hawks to hang around and make the game really close. The second unit had little ball movement and the team shot an awful 25% for the quarter. The Hawks were able to kick off the quarter with a 10-2 run and Cousins stopped the bleeding with a lay up.

As the quarter moved along, Kent Bazemore tied the game up at 80 with a little under six minutes remaining, but Omri Casspi answered with a three pointer. The Kings ball movement faded once again. Korver hit a three pointer to take the lead down to 1, 86-85. With 41.3 seconds remaining, Cauley-Stein was fouled and made two big free throws to go up 88-85.

“Y’all’s guess is as good [as] mine” Cauley-Stein said when asked about the last time he made back to back free throws.

After the free throws, the Hawks got down the court and Schröder made a big shot beyond the arc to tie the game up at 88 with 28.5 seconds left. The Kings took a time out and it appeared that Coach George Karl drew up the perfect play. Rondo pushed the ball inside to Cous, who dumped it off and set a pick to give Rondo a wide open lay up for a 90-88 lead with 12.9 seconds to go. Out of Atlanta’s time out, Millsap lost the ball straight into Casspi’s hands who called a time out with 3.3 left.

Darren Collison got the ball in the back court from Rondo and was fouled with 1.9 left. Collison missed the first free throw, but made the second. Atlanta took another time out and on the in bound pass it appeared Cauley-Stein tipped the ball to cause another turn over to end the game. Cauley-Stein’s length and defense helped end the game and all those turn overs caught up to the Hawks. The Kings won, 91-88, and heard loud cheers from the fans who brought a lot of enthusiasm and energy. The crowd played a huge role in helping the Kings pull through and close out an important game.

19 turnovers and a 35.4 shooting percentage should have resulted in a loss for the Kings, but they showed heart and found a way to pull through. Cauley-Stein finished with his second consecutive and career double double, 12 points and 11 boards. Cousins totaled 24 points and 15 rebounds for a ninth game in a row.

“Just playing hard,” Cauley-Stein said when asked about his second double double.

WCS also preached about playing for his teammates giving him the motivation to play at such a high level and with such intensity.

Rondo notched his fifth triple double on the season with 11 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. Rondo tied Chris Webber for the most triple doubles in a season by a Kings player in the Sacramento era and we are not even at the All Star break.

“Man, he got the triple double because of me,” Cousins said with a laugh.

“The impact he has on games is incredible, I’m glad I can go to war with him” Boogie said.

Without one of their big three, Rondo and Cousins pulled out all the stops and meshed well together. Cauley-Stein was also a huge factor and McLemore stepped up to finish with 14 points. The Kings hit the glass hard and played big over a small Atlanta team with 56 rebounds to Atlanta’s 42. The Hawks only led by two at the beginning of the game and Sacramento proved why they deserve to be in the playoff hunt. The Kings now hold a game lead over the Jazz for the eighth seed and are two back of the Houston Rockets for the seventh spot.

This Saturday, the Kings will take on the Indiana Pacers and All Star starter Paul George at home to go for a fifth straight win.

DMC and Gay lead Kings to victory, 103-101, over Jazz

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Image

SACRAMENTO- Heading into Thursday night’s game the Sacramento Kings were 2 games back behind their opponent, the Utah Jazz. Sacramento, 5-12 on the road, looked to come back from a bad loss the night before against the Pelicans. The Kings found a way to hold their opponent to a low shooting percentage, at least for three quarters, with tough perimeter defense while getting the ball inside to DeMarcus Cousins who had a tremendous game. The Kings shot the ball well and were able to just hold on to pick up the win against the Jazz, 103-101, at Vivint Smart Home Arena.

As the game got underway the Kings looked like the better team all the way. The team’s defense was tremendous and Utah could not make any shots. Willie Cauley-Stein got off to a great start putting up six quick points while playing tremendous defense. Cauley-Stein’s quickness as a big man has benefitted the Kings and his hustle does not go unnoticed.

Cousins did not do a ton of scoring in the first quarter, six points, but did a good job of moving the ball around for his teammates while picking up eight early rebounds. The Kings shot the ball well, while holding the Jazz to a 16.7% shooting percentage. The Kings did a great job of continuing their run as Utah went about eight minutes without a field goal. Gordon Hayward bricked a lot of shots and found a couple buckets at the charity stripe. Sacramento held the Jazz to 12 points, the lowest of any Kings’ opponent this season, giving them a 1st quarter lead 26-12.

The Jazz looked to have a better second quarter, but the Kings held them in check again. In full, Utah went nine minutes and 19 seconds without a field goal before Trevor Booker got a put back dunk for a field goal. After struggling all season with perimeter defense, the Kings were much improved in the first half, although there were a lot of fouls, 17 in the first two quarters for the Kings. The quarter consisted of a lot of free throws, 12-18 for Sacramento, and 9-13 for the Jazz.

Boogie came out stronger in the second quarter, totaling 18 points and 13 rebounds in the half, his sixth consecutive double-double. With DMC’s scoring ability the Kings were able to hang on to the lead although the Jazz outscored them 33-30 after shooting the ball much better. Trey Lyles and Raul Neto totaled 10 points for a team high as the Kings held the lead 56-45 heading into the locker room on 54.3% shooting. Utah shot 1/16 from 3 point range, much improved for Sacramento’s perimeter defense. The Kings scored a field goal with 1.6 seconds on the clock as Rajon Rondo passed the ball all the way up court to Darren Collison who missed the lay-up but Boogie cleaned it up with a dunk as the red lights lit up the backboard.

After the half time break, Hayward finally made a field goal after going 0-9. Cousins answered right back with his tremendous scoring ability. Rondo kept showing off his vision and passing ability with a pass on a very tight window to Rudy Gay for an alley-oop. Cousins continued his scoring ability with his first three pointer in the ball game in the third quarter. And Rondo once again got Gay the ball for another alley-oop later in the quarter. Both teams shot well and both Gay and Cousins showed off their scoring abilities. Gay scored eight in the quarter while Cousins scored 10, both shooting 3-5 from the field. The Kings got to the line 10 times and converted eight free throws. Hayward had a much better quarter, scoring nine points on 3-6 shooting.

Cousins produced the game high in three quarters with 28 points and Gay had 16 for the second highest point total. The Kings shot the ball well once again with a 54% percentage through three quarters, which is something they have done well all season. Through three quarters the Kings totaled 42 points in the paint and got the ball inside to Boogie a lot. Boogie has scored 15.7 points in the paint per game in the month of January as the Kings continue to dominate their opponents close to the rim. Their dominance allowed them to hang on to the lead although Hayward hit a buzzer beater heading into the fourth. Sacramento led the Jazz 82-71 with 12 minutes remaining.

To open up the final quarter, Omri Casspi knocked down a three pointer, something he has done well all season. Down 85-71 the Jazz found a rhythm and went on a 9-0 run in a minute and 50 seconds. The run consisted of a Casspi foul and technical, which gave Utah three easy points as Trey Burke connected on the free throw. Cauley-Stein stopped the bleeding with a put back dunk, but Utah kept hanging around. Gay struggled from three but Cousins was able to hit a big 3 pointer of his own to put the Kings back up by 10. Utah maintained a way to stick around with the Kings who could not find a way to put the Jazz out.

With two minutes and 55 seconds left the Kings held a six point lead over the Jazz and Cauley-Stein helped maintain that lead with a big rejection, showing off his athletic ability. But Gay fouled Rodney Hood behind the arc, which led to three shots from the charity stripe. Hood connected on all three cutting the lead to five. The Kings started to struggle and went three minutes and 16 seconds without a make but Cousins then proceeded to score. Rondo fouled Burke, which set up a three point play as the Jazz kept scrapping.

As time wound down, Hood hit a second chance three pointer to cut the lead to five one again. With 33 seconds left, Gay got to the foul line and made one of the two free throws. In just under four seconds, Hayward took the ball down the court, got fouled and made a circus shot to get the and one. Hayward made the bucket and forced the Kings to called a timeout, up 101-98 with 29.2 seconds remaining.

Out of the time out, Rondo took the shot and missed it, as the Jazz gained possession with 8.5 seconds remaining. Utah’s Joe Ingles took the three point shot and made it to tie the game at 101. Sacramento took a 20 second time out with 4.8 seconds remaining and drew up a play for Gay who scored well all night. Gay got the ball and hit a mid-range jumped that was good with 0.6 seconds left. Utah heaved up a miracle shot that had no chance and the Kings picked up a rare victory on back to back games especially on the road. The final score, 103-101, as the Kings just barely pulled out a W.

Amongst rumors of a proposed trade for Pelican’s forward, Ryan Anderson, Gay played an awesome game. Number eight finished the night with 24 points, 9-17 from the field, adding nine rebounds and three steals while knocking down the game winner.

DMC was once again unstoppable, finished with 36 points, 10-21 shooting, and adding 14 free throws on 21 attempts. Boogie also added 17 boards. Cousins has led the NBA in points in the month of January with 32.3 points per game. Cousins showed off his scoring ability once again with his inside dominance as Utah had no big man to cover him with Derrick Favors out. And Rondo continued to dish the ball out adding 13 assists, while adding 6 points and 6 rebounds.

Overall, Sacramento got careless with the ball, 16 turnovers but still shot well. Their defense looked good for three quarters but really let up towards the end although they were much improved. The team also dominated the rebounding category, 54-38. Cauley-Stein was a great spark for the Kings who looked better tonight as they continued to chase the Jazz for the eight seed.

On Saturday, the Kings will take on the Clippers in Los Angeles and will need Cousins to continue his hot start in the new year. The whole Kings crew is going to have to come together as the team is finally healthy and looks to beat a team in their conference and division. The Kings have struggled against really good teams so Saturday night will be a big test.

Golden State uses the 3-pointer to beat the Kings 128-116

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
NBA: Golden State Warriors at Sacramento Kings
Photo Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

By Charlie O. Mallonee

The Golden State Warriors lived by the 3-point basket on Saturday night versus the Sacramento Kings and it led them to a 128-116 victory. The Warriors connected on 19 of 37 3-point attempts (51.4-percent) and broke the back of the Kings in doing so.

Kings head coach George Karl said after game that great shooting is contagious. No one who watched the game against Golden State would be able to mount a defense to counter that notion.

The other area the Warriors dominated in the was rebounding. Golden State out-rebounded the Kings 48-34 in the game. Even though the Warriors played “small ball” most of the night, their ability to rebound the ball was almost uncanny.

There were two key plays that defined the game for the Kings. The first happened in the first period with 5:43 left to play. Rajon Rondo picked up his second personal foul and had to go to the Kings bench. The loss of Rondo and his assists denied the Kings the opportunity to build a lead. He would not return until the 7:37 mark of the second quarter. Rondo was limited to just 13 minutes of playing time in the first half. Another seven to 10 minutes of time on the floor could have been a difference maker in this game.

The second incident happened with 9:44 to go in the third quarter. That is when DeMarcus Cousins was charged with his fourth personal foul. Cousins had to sit down and would not return until the final period. The Kings cannot hang with a team like the Warriors without Cousins working the paint on both ends of floor.

Would the Kings won the game if Rondo and Cousins were able to keep playing rather than sitting on the bench with foul trouble? That is really difficult to project. What can be said is the Kings would have had a better chance to compete with Golden State if Rondo and Cousins had not been lost for extended periods of time.

It was entertaining game that energized the sellout crowd that included a large contingent of Golden State fans. The crowd was loud and loving the basketball they were witnessing on the floor.

The Kings record fell to 15-22 (10-10 at home). Golden State improves to 35-2 on the season and 18-2 on the road.

Kings

DeMarcus Cousins was the Kings leading scorer with 33 points. He recorded another double-double by hauling in 10 rebounds. Cousins shot 12 of 27 from the floor.

Rudy Gay was the “blue collar” workhorse for the Kings in the game. He played 38 minutes scoring 23 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Even when shots were not falling for Gay, he continued to work hard.

Darren Collison was a star off the bench for Sacramento. Collison logged 31 minutes scoring 16 points and dishing out six assists. He went 5-for-10 shooting and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line.

Marco Belinelli had an “agony and ecstasy” game versus the Warriors. Belinelli shot 0-for-6 from the floor in the first half. He finished the game shooting 5-for-14 and went 3-for-7 from long range. Belinelli just could not find his range in the first half.

Willie Cauley-Stein returned to the Kings lineup putting up 10 points in just nine minutes off the bench.

The Kings shot 46.7-percent (43-for-92) from the floor. They hit on 8 of 23 (34.8-percent) of their 3-point attempts. Sacramento went 22-for-29 from the free throw line.

Sacramento distributed 27 assists in the contest reaching the 20-assists mark for the 33rd straight game.

The Kings took good care of the ball turning it over just 10 times.

Warriors

The reigning MVP of the association – Stephen Curry – led the Warriors in scoring with 38 points. He scored 19 in each half. Curry made it a double-double night by adding 11 assists.

Draymond Green came up big for Golden State again on Saturday night. Green scored 25 points. He shot 5-for-6 from downtown.

The other half of the “splash brothers” – Klay Thompson – had an interesting night. Thompson scored 15 points but shot just 1-for-7 from beyond the 3-point line. He shot 7-for-17 for the game.

Andre Iguodala added 13 points, Brandon Rush 11 and Harrison Barnes 10.

Golden State shot 56.3-percent (49-for-87) from the floor including the 19 3-pointers. The Warriors recorded 35 assists. Their one blemish was turnovers. The Warriors turned it over 18 times.

What they said after the game

“This video is going to be good. This film is going to be good, too many good things (happened),” said Kings head coach George Karl. “I think you can learn from playing a team like this. It doesn’t feel good, but in the 3-minute mark (left to go) we were in a basketball game. I actually think we made a couple good defensive plays, and they made better offensive plays.”

“We played them pretty well for about 38 minutes, (Then) they turned it up in the end and made some tough shots (and) moved the ball around,” explained Rudy Gay. “They make you pay on everything. So, they’re a great team. They’re a championship team and they’ve been there before. That’s probably why they execute so well.”

“We did a better job engaging in the game (after the first quarter),” said Warriors interim head coach Luke Walton. “The first quarter we were turning the ball over. Just awful turnovers – like not even forced. Just throwing it away. This team – Sacramento – is a good team and they’re fighting for a playoff spot. We’ve beaten them three times already so there’s pride they have. Nobody wants to get swept by another team. They came out and they wanted it more than us. They were playing harder than us to start the game but out guys did a great job of getting reengaged and kind of slowly,slowly taking control of the game again.”

When asked about shooting 51-percent from the 3-point line Draymond Green said, “Yeah we were able to get something going. I think we really moved the ball and got good open shots. We got the shot. Guys knocked them down so we kind of took advantage of out ball movement.”

Up next

The Kings are off until Wednesday night when they will host the New Orleans Pelicans in the final game of this home-stand.

The Warriors will host the Miami Heat in Oakland on Monday night.

Kings defeat Lakers, 118-115, in Kobe’s Sacramento Farewell

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

picture credit Google Images

SACRAMENTO- Nostalgia was in the air at Sleep Train Arena tonight. The Lakers and Kings played a game that brought everyone back to the memories of what was once the NBA’s best rivalry. Kobe Bryant was vintage, taking us back into a time machine as well in his final game in Sacramento. The crowd got loud, the Beat LA chants surfaced and the game came down to the wire. But that same nostalgia should have never been as the Kings let a 27-point lead dwindle in a matter of minutes. Luckily for the Kings their lead was just enough as the team sent off Bryant with a loss in his final game in Sacramento, 118-115, in a tale of two halves.

The Kings came out of the gate with great ball movement and shot the ball with precision while playing with great tempo. The team was able to get off to a hot start, going on a 19-4 run before the Lakers took a timeout to try and stop the bleeding. The Kings pushed the ball up court well, totaling 11 fast break points. The ball was continuously moved throughout the quarter and the Kings dropped 11 assists while turning the ball over just 2 times. The Kings biggest lead of the quarter was 21 when they went up 25-4 over Los Angeles. The Lakers tried to find some sort of offense, but the Kings looked better on defense only allowing the Lakers to shoot 40% from the field. The Kings shot 60% from the field, 15-25. DeMarcus Cousins continued his recent dominance with 12 points, 3-6 from the field, with 2 of those field goals coming from behind the arc. Cousins also grabbed 5 rebounds while going 4-4 from the charity stripe. Rajon Rondo finished the quarter with 5 dimes and Quincy Acy was a nice spark with 7 points as he started the game for the Kings. Ben McLemore did a nice job of getting to the hoop as he finished with 8 points. Great overall team play put the Kings on top of the Lakers, 38-21, after the first quarter.

The second quarter featured much of the same for Sacramento, although the Lakers played a bit better cutting the Kings lead to 14 early in the quarter. The Kings found a way to answer right back, however, as the team was able to sustain. Cousins was an efficient scorer, adding 10 more points in the second, 3-3 from the field and 4-5 from the free throw line. Cousins totaled 22 points for the game high, adding 6 boards. The Kings shot the ball 59.1% for the half while only turning the ball over 3 times in the quarter, for a total of 5 at the half. Bryant made his presence felt with 18 points in the half on 7-12 shooting. The Kings used their dominance in the paint to keep the lead after 2 quarters, 69-48.

Up by 21 heading into the 3rd, the game was the Kings to lose. The team still found a way to hold a big lead through half of the 3rd quarter, going up by 27 at one point. Rondo still found a way to dish the ball out and Acy benefitted from it.  Rondo also had a break out pass to Rudy Gay for a big hammer dunk in the quarter. But Cousins picked up a 5th with 5:48 remaining and that really hurt the Kings. The Lakers slowly cut down the Kings lead, Bryant totaled 10 points in the quarter, and finished the night with 28 points. Acy scored 11 points in the quarter and finished the 3rd with 18 points. D’Angelo Russell had a good quarter and finished with 16 points through 3. The Kings were still able to keep their shooting percentage up high at 58.6% and held the lead, 102-86.

The 4th quarter went as horrible as the Kings could possibly imagine. The young Lakers team played without Bryant for the 4th and they attacked the Kings defense. D’Angelo Russell scored 11 points and Jordan Clarkson added 12. The two young guards tore up the Kings defense while the Kings could not find a way to score. The Kings watched their lead completely disappear, as the Lakers went on a 24-3 run to take the lead, 109-108. The game soon became back and forth, with Sleep Train getting extremely loud. Gay took an alley oop from Rondo to put the Kings up late, but the Lakers came right back. The Lakers tried to foul rondo, who split a pair of free throws. Then Cousins was fouled and split a pair of free throws, the Lakers were up 115-114. . The Kings took the lead with 21.7 seconds remaining on a tear drop lay-up from Rondo. On the next passion, Cousins caused Clarkson to turn the ball over as the Kings were up by 1 and then drew a foul. Cousins made both free throws. As the Kings were up 118-115, Lou Williams took a 3 pointer in the final seconds and missed it. The crowd breathed a sigh of relief as the Kings were outscored 29-16 in the quarter, but pulled out the victory.

The Lakers shot the ball 55% for the quarter and finished shooting 54.7%. In the 4th, the Kings shot the ball at 40%. Cousins finished with 29 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists. Rondo finished with 9 points and 12 assists. Acy was a great spark for the Kings, finishing the night with 18 points. The Kings finished the game in sloppy fashion and ended the night with 15 turnovers. Their dominance in the paint did prevail, 64 points on the night. The Kings are now 10-3 when shooting over 50% with a 55.3 shooting percentage on the night. Russell scored 27 for the Lakers as he looks to be the new Kings killer and Williams added 20. The Kings barely squeaked out a win and Coach George Karl was not too pleased with his team afterwards.

After answering a few questions, Karl walked out of the media room.

After the game, Bryant reminisced on his time in Sacramento and about the applause from the fans.

“It was great. It’s a sign of respect, even though we’ve been enemies for years…” said Bryant.

Bryant also had high praise for Cousins who finished 1 point shy of 30. Cousins would have finished his fourth consecutive game with 30+ plus points had he made one more free throw or field goal.

Although the Kings won, there was little satisfaction.

Coach Karl said “Dallas was a good loss, tonight was a bad win..”

Boogie agreed.  “I feel the loss against Dallas was better than this win against the Lakers,” said Cousins.

The Kings almost gave away a huge lead and need to find a way to close out games while not playing to the level of opponents who are much worse than them. The Kings will take on the Warriors at home this Saturday and if the team hopes to stand a chance, they will need to play like they did in the first half, while closing out the second half.