Tag: Sacramento Kings

The Rockets outlast the Kings 116-110

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli
AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli

By Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento – No DeMarcus Cousins, no defense and too much James Harden equaled a loss for the Kings on Friday night. The Houston Rockets – sans Dwight Howard – defeated the Sacramento Kings 116-110 at Sleep Train Arena.

The Kings announced before the game that DeMarcus Cousins’ strained Achilles tendon would prevent him from playing against Houston and would keep him on the bench versus the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night. It is very tough for a team to end a losing streak when your best player is on the bench in street clothes.

The Rockets roared out of the gate building up a 21-6 lead on the Kings in the first quarter. Sacramento’s starters were unable to score or stop Houston from scoring. It appeared that it would be a Rockets runaway, but the Kings bench had a different idea.

The Sacramento second unit led by Darren Collison with assistance from Willie Cauley-Stein, Omri Casspi and Ben McLemore put together a nice run to put the Kings within striking distance. The Kings trailed 29-23 after the first period.

The Kings continued to play small ball and took the lead 37-35 for the first and only time in the game with 7:23 left to play in the first half. James Harden caught fire scoring 17 points in the quarter and Houston took a 61-50 lead to the locker room at the half.

The Rockets went on a 10-3 run to open the third quarter and it appeared that game might get out of hand. George Karl went to his bench and they responded by making defensive stops while scoring points. Sacramento went on an 11-0 run that included a dramatic 3-point basket by Darren Collison to keep the Kings in the game trailing Houston by seven – 85 to 78 – heading to the final period.

The Kings continued to make baskets and cut the Houston lead to one point when Seth Curry hit a 3-point bucket with 10:02 to play. The Rockets then went on a run that allowed them to take a 100-89 lead with 6:53 remaining. Sacramento’s second unit continued to work hard but in the end, they could not overcome the hard charging Houston offense led by Harden. The Rockets won the game by six points, 116-110.

Kings

Sacramento shot below their season average hitting on 40 of 93 field goals for a .430 percentage. The Kings went 9-for-28 (.321) from 3-point land. One of the positive notes was the free throw shooting. They converted 21 of 29 free throw opportunities for a .724 average. The team has been averaging just .640 from the charity stripe.

The Sacramento bench was the story in the game a they scored 70 points. Darren Collison and Omri Casspi each scored 22 off the bench. Ben McLemore had a strong night for the second unit scoring 11 points, grabbing four rebounds, recording four assists and adding three steals. Seth Curry scored eight points while Willie Cauley-Stein added seven points and nine rebounds.

Rudy Gay led the Kings starters with 15 points. Rajon Rondo scored 12 points, pulled down eight rebounds and handed out five assists.

Sacramento committed 15 turnovers while recording 26 assists. Houston out-rebounded the Kings 49-43.

Houston

This game was all about the play of James Harden and some devastating 3-point shooting for the Rockets. Harden posted a double-double scoring 43 points and hauling down 13 rebounds in 41 minutes of playing time.

Trevor Ariza scored 18 points going 4-for-8 from long distance. Former King Marcus Thornton went 4-for-10 from beyond the 3-point line scoring 16 points. Ty Lawson and Clint Capela scored 13 points each.

As a team, Houston shot .488 from the floor, .417 from beyond the 3-point arc and .778 from the free throw line. The Rockets dished out 23 assists and turned the ball over 21 times. Houston’s bench added just 13 points.

Dwight Howard was held out of the game to rest his back. He is expected to play in the Rockets next game versus the Clippers.

What they had to say after the game

“All you can ask of your team when your team is struggling … and a lot of our offense was pretty good but we didn’t make shots to reward them,” said Kings head coach George Karl. “Their bench came in and got juiced, played the game at a high level for an extended period of time. The hole we dug, and we ran out of gas.”

“The nightmare when you play Houston is you have defend layups and threes. First half we did a good job covering threes and didn’t cover the layups. Second half we covered the layup and didn’t cover the three’” added Karl.

Up next

The Kings will have no time to lick their wounds as they must turnaround and face the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors on Saturday night. The Warriors (6-0) have yet to lose this season.

Houston travels to Los Angeles to face the Clippers tomorrow night. Dwight Howard is expected to play for the Rockets.

Suns down Kings, 118-97, as Sacramento gives poor defensive effort

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by Michael Martinez

picture credit Google Images

SACRAMENTO- After a mediocre performance at home the night before, the Kings looked to pick up the slack from last night. The defense needed improvement and so did the offense. The offense did improve, but the defense was even more horrendous than the night before. With Demarcus Cousins out for the second consecutive game, the Kings hoped to fill his void with Rudy Gay and Rajon Rondo, but neither player truly stepped up. With some many open looks and letting the Suns shoot the ball at a high percentage, the Kings lost to the Suns at Talking Stick Resort Arena, 118-97, never once holding the lead.

The Kings starting lineup added a couple of new members with Darren Collison and James Anderson. As the Kings have done a lot lately, they started the game down early as the Suns took a 9-2 lead with 9 minutes remaining. The Kings transition and perimeter defense looked poor from the start and was a trend throughout the game. Rondo had his hands full all night being asked to guard Eric Bledsoe who put up 10 points in the first quarter. The Kings kept allowing the Suns to get wide open looks although their defense started to improve towards the end of the 1st. On the offensive end of the court, the Kings did not do much with Rudy Gay having a rough night. Gay has been unable to fill the large hole the Kings are left, without All Star Demarcus Cousins. Kosta Koufos and Rondo were the only real offense in the 1st with a measly 4 points a piece. Phoenix took advantage of the Kings’ poor defense and shooting, 38.1% from the field, to take a 28-18 lead at the end of the 1st quarter.

With the Kings looking to turn things around, they started off the quarter with Omri Casspi missing 2 free throws. Missing free throws has become a trend for the Kings as of late who are the worst free throw shooting team in the league according to ESPN. The Kings were not careless with the ball, however their shot selection was poor and when driving to the hoop they were out of control. The Kings began to turn things around when they were able to attack the basket and get the ball in the paint to Koufos who put up 6 points in the 2nd quarter and shooting 5 for 6 with 6 rebounds at the end of the 1st half. Unfortunately, even with a little bit of better ball movement, the Kings could not stop the Suns on the defensive end. Most of the Suns players scored in the 2nd quarter to hold the lead, 49-40, at the end of the 1st half.

After a pretty effortless 1st half, the Kings came out with fire under their belts. James Anderson came out on fire as he hit 3 3 pointers quickly as the Kings went on a 15-6 run to start the 3rd quarter. The Kings did a good job of swinging the ball around the perimeter and pushing towards the hoop on fast breaks. The Kings almost matched their first quarter total of 18 points in less than 5 minutes and tied the game at 55 all. This caused the Suns to take a timeout and after the timeout, Phoenix never looked back. Brandon Knight, who had no points in the 1st half, came alive and found his stroke. Knight was 5-8 from the field, going 2-4 behind the arc, scoring 12 points in the 3rd alone. Koufos continued to help the Kings with his presence when he finished the 3rd with 14 points, yet the Kings could not find a way to get back in the game. The Suns went on a 26-14 run after the Kings tied the game. The score at the end of the quarter was 81-69, the Suns over the Kings.

If the Kings had any hopes of getting back into the ball game, they needed to step up their defense. Nonetheless, the Kings could not do so and the Suns shot 65.2% from the field in the 4th quarter and scored 37 points. Alex Len broke out big for the Suns as he scored 14 points in the fourth on 6-9 shooting. Len would finish the game with 16 points. Bledsoe had a game high of 19 points going 8-18 from the field and Knight finished with 17 points shooting 7-16. Even though the Kings left open way too many shooters and allowed easy finishes, Marco Bellineli did a good job of shooting the ball tonight. He scored 8 points in the fourth quarter, had 15 in the game on 6-11 shooting including 2-5 from beyond the arc. Koufos was the Kings best player tonight, finishing with 16 points going 8-11 from the field with 7 boards. Anderson finished the game with 15 points but on a poor 33% shooting percentage. The Kings finished the game shooting 47.6% from the field and 45.8% from downtown. The Suns held the lead the entire way by shooting 54.2% from the field and incredible 60.9% from 3 point range, giving them the victory over the Kings, 118-97.

As the Kings continue to play poorly, they really need to get effort from their big names, particularly Gay and Rondo. Without Cousins, the Kings seem to be lost and are not showing any reason why they should be a playoff contender. Hopefully for the Kings, Cousins will be able to play in their home game this Friday against the Rockets. The Kings will need to figure out how to stop shooters on the perimeter as James Harden comes to town, otherwise it is going to be another miserable night.

Kings look sloppy at home, lose to the Grizzlies, 103-89

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By Michael Martinez

picture credit Google Images

SACRAMENTO- Any team that has to play a playoff caliber team without their starting All Star center is going to struggle. Not only is it difficult to play without your only All Star, but when the team you are playing lost by 50 the night before, you know you could be in even more trouble. Without Demarcus Cousins, who is dealing with an achilles injury, the Kings looked lost and hopeless in many aspects. As nobody was able to step up to replace Cousins, the Kings ball movement was lifeless, the defense was filled with holes and the Grizzlies got an easy win at Sleep Train Arena, 103-89, boosting their morale after an embarrassing loss to the Warriors the night before.

For the Kings, the whole game was not a complete disaster as the 1st quarter went well. To start the 1st quarter, the Kings looked sluggish on the offensive and defensive end. They allowed the Grizzlies to take an early 7 point lead, but nevertheless the Kings came back swinging with a 5-0 run to cut the lead to 2. The Kings began to put themselves in a better position with good ball movement and Rudy Gay’s hustle really helped as well. When Gay was asked to guard Zach Randolph, he used his length to his advantage on the defensive end and his speed on the offensive end as well. Gay put up 8 points in the first quarter by attacking the rim and getting good looks from the field. Marco Belinelli also helped the Kings by finishing the quarter with 8 points on 2 for 2 shooting behind the arc. The Kings began to cause Memphis to turn the ball over and by shooting 58.8% from the field the Kings finished the quarter with a 29-25 lead.

Entering the 2nd quarter with a 4 point lead over the Grizzlies, the Kings looked to continue scoring on the offensive end. However, the second quarter was absolutely atrocious for the Kings in many ways. Nobody on the team could hit the broad side of the barn with their shots, including free throws. Free throws aka free points were more of a kryptonite for the Kings who finished the half shooting 57.1% from the charity stripe. Their field goal percentage also dropped 20% as they finished the quarter shooting 37.5% from the field. Gay looked to continue to step up but his shot was completely out of sync. The ball movement was stagnant as the Kings had 0 assists in the 2nd quarter. Sloppy play and being out rebounded, 27 to 16, caused the Kings to be outscored. Without Demarcus Cousins and with Kosta Koufos in foul trouble, it was to be expected but this hurt the Kings. Luckily the Grizzlies did not play well either, except they had a couple big put back jams from Jaymychal Green and Courtney Lee, which were the only real highlights of the quarter. The Grizzlies finished the quarter with a fast break lay up at the buzzer to take a 50-40 lead as they outscored the Kings 25-11.

After an awful second quarter, the Kings hoped to come out of the locker room with a vengeance. Unfortunately for the home team, their defense looked even sloppier than the quarter before. The Grizzlies continuously got wide open shots and were able to get easy hoops close to the basket. Randolph came out strong and had 8 points in the quarter. He finished the game with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Although the Kings scored more than they did in the second quarter, thanks to Gay and Darren Collison, their field goal percentage dropped to 37% for the game. The ball movement that helped the Kings play well in the preseason became nonexistent in the 3rd quarter. A lot of selfish play put the Kings in a bad position even though they put up 27 points in the 3rd. As the Kings’ defense failed to improve, the Grizzlies led 83-67 to end the 3rd.

With the Kings down by 16 to start the 4th, Cousins sat with his teammates on the bench to try and encourage a come back. The come back was not meant to be, as nobody on the team could get enough offense going to cut the Grizzlies lead. Belinelli had a nice pass to Willie Cauley-Stein for a big dunk, but once Coach George Karl saw the lead was too much, the bench players came in. For the Grizzlies, Brendan Wright did a good job in the 4th quarter off the bench. Wright finished with 10 points on 4 for 5 shooting, adding 6 rebounds and 3 assists. Although the Kings outscored the Grizzlies, 22-20 in the 4th, they simply could not shoot the ball all night. They finished the game with a 39.2 shooting percentage and shot 60% from the free throw line.

The only bright spots for the Kings, more like dim spots, was the scoring of Collison and Gay. Collison finished the game with 18 points, but uncharacteristically only had 1 assist. Gay finished the game with 19 points, adding 5 rebounds and 3 assists. The Kings biggest problem was that there was very little ball movement. After 7 assists in the 1st quarter, they finished the game with only 17 assists. Without the team’s best scorer and rebounder, the Kings are going to need Rajon Rondo to create open shots and the Kings’ shooters are going to need to hit open shots and get better looks. The Kings will take on the Phoenix Suns tomorrow night, where hopefully they can improve in every aspect as Cousins will be sitting out once again.

Kings crush the Lakers 132-114

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NBA.com
NBA.com

By Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento – The circus came to town on Friday night in the form of the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers might not see the Kings as their archrivals, but Kings fans see the purple and gold as an enemy that needs to conquered.

The Kings conquered the Lakers on Friday night 132-114 in a game that was not a close as the score would indicate. Sacramento dominated the game from the opening tip. The Lakers had only one lead in the game – 4 to2 at the 10:40 mark in the first quarter. Los Angeles never came close to a lead after that.

The Kings scored 40 points in the first quarter and 34 more in the second period. They held a 74-50 lead at halftime. The only question was how would the Kings respond coming out of halftime?

There was a bit of a letdown as the Lakers outscored the Kings 33-28 in the third and 31-30 in the fourth quarter. The Lakers tried to make a run in the fourth quarter but the game outcome was never in question.

Preseason prognosticators predicted the Kings would finish three to five places ahead of the Lakers in the NBA Western Conference. After the game on Friday, you can see why those predictions are accurate. The Kings are an improved team while the Lakers are young and not very good at this point. The Lakers have potential, but it is going to be painful while that potential develops into a winning basketball team.

Kings

George Karl was unhappy with the Kings pace in the first quarter of the game with the Clippers. In his pregame press conference he made it clear that wanted his to play defense from the opening tip with the Lakers.

Karl even changed his starting lineup in order to achieve his goals. Rookie center Willie Cauley-Stein made his first NBA start on Friday night versus the Lakers. Karl said he liked the match ups with Cauley-Stein in the lineup.

Cauley-Stein did not let his coach down. The Kings newest big man played 30-plus minutes, scored 17 points, grabbed nine rebounds and had three blocked shots. He also took care of the ball making only two turnovers during his time on the floor.

Rajon Rondo had a breakout game for Sacramento. He scored 21 points and dished out eight assists in just 23 minutes of playing time. Rondo was very much the floor general the Kings want him to be on Friday.

DeMarcus Cousins put together another double-double night. He scored 21 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. Cousins also had three assists and two blocked shots. He shot 11-for-14 from the free throw line.

Rudy Gay also had a big night for the Kings. He put up 19 points shooting 8-for-12 from the floor. Gay also had three assists and two steals.

The Kings second unit had a productive night as well. Darren Collison scored 14 points, Omri Casspi 12, Kosta Koufos 8 and Marco Belinelli six.

The Kings shot .515 (52-for-101) from the floor. That is not a typographical error. Sacramento took 101 shots in the game.

If there was a disappointment in the game, it was the Kings 3-point shooting. They shot just .273 (6-for-22) from beyond the 3-point line.

Sacramento was also an improved team from the free throw line. They were 22-for-30 (.733) from the stripe. The 30 attempts were a vast improvement over the mere 18 chances they had against the Clippers. The Kings were driving the ball to basket versus the Lakers.

The Kings exceeded George Karl’s goal for 25 assists per game by dishing out 26 assists.

The also took better care of the basketball cutting their turnovers down to just 14 and giving up just 10 points off those mistakes.

The Kings scored 80 points in the paint to just 38 for the Lakers. Just another example of the team’s complete domination of Los Angeles in the game.

Lakers

Guard Jordan Clarkson led the scoring for the Lakers with 22 points. He shot 10-for-15 from the floor and 2-for-3 from beyond the 3-point arc.

Nick Young was productive off the bench for Los Angeles putting up 17 points in his 21-plus minutes on the floor.

D’Angelo Russell – the Lakers number one draft pick – scored 13 points shooting 5-for-10 from the field. He also dished out two assists as he alternated with Clarkson at point guard.

Kobe Bryant played 22 minutes in the game putting up 13 points, recording three assists and hauling in four rebounds. Bryant moved into fifth place on the NBA’s all-time career list for the most field goals made, passing Shaquille O’Neal (11,330).

As a team, the Lakers shot .461 (41-for-89) for the game. They shot a very respectable .324 (11-for-34) from 3-point land.

Turnovers were a major problem for the Lakers. They gave up 30 points to the Kings off 19 turnovers.

The Lakers used all 13 of their active players in game Friday night. Metta World Peace and Larry Nance Jr. were inactive for the Lakers.

What they said after the game

“I think we challenged them to play defense,” said George Karl. “Our pressure took the offense away and forced them into a lot of jump shots. We ran into a different team in the second half. I wasn’t really happy with the defensive performance in the second half. Learning how to play 48 minutes fast is not always as easy as people think it is. I thought tonight they did a good job for the most part, there were some muddy moments where the ball got sticky and we got a little selfish.”

When asked if he had a good time in first start, Willie Cauley-Stein said, “Yeah, it was a great time. A lot of fun – definitely – a lot of fun. We were sharing the ball really well so that made it a lot more fun. Sharing the ball and not having ball stoppers – that is vital to us. If we want to be a good team, we’ve got to share the ball like that.”

Up next

The Kings play the Clippers in Los Angeles on Saturday night. Playing the very tough Clippers on the second night of back-to-back games will be no easy task. After the Saturday night game, the Kings will not face another Los Angeles team until January 2016.

The Lakers will return to action on Sunday night when they host the Dallas Mavericks at Staple’s Center.

Kings lose their home opener to the Clippers 111-104

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

Karl Presser

By Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento – The Sacramento Kings opened their final season in the Sleep Train Arena with a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers 111-104 on Wednesday night. The Clippers – led by forward Blake Griffin – appeared to be headed to a relatively easy victory until the Kings fought their way back into the game in the fourth quarter.

The Kings trailed the Clippers by as many as 15 points in the game. The Kings took their first lead in the game with 6:51 to play on a Rudy Gay jump shot. The lead seasawed back and forth until Los Angeles went on a “mini” six point run that put the game out of reach for the Kings.

The game took on a playoff atmosphere as the sellout crowd did all they could to urge their team to an opening night victory. In the end, the Kings began their run too late to overcome the very talented Clippers squad.

Kings

The Kings were expected to rely more on outside shooting under the leadership of George Karl. Instead, the game became a battle in the paint in the first half. It continued to be a game dominated by play in the paint until the Kings began to find their outside shooting range in the fourth quarter. Sacramento scored 48 points in the paint to just 36 for the Clippers.

The Kings finished the game shooting .436 from the floor (41-for-94). Sacramento shot just .350 from the field in the first quarter.

Sacramento shot .458 (11-for-24) from beyond the 3-point arc with eight of those 3-pointers coming in the second half.

The team did not shoot well from the free throw line which is surprising because the Kings are known as an excellent shooting team from the stripe. The Kings went 11-for-18 (.611) from the free throw line. The limited number of trips to the foul line may also be of concern to coach George Karl.

It appeared that the Kings might do themselves in with turnovers. They committed 10 turnovers in the first half. The team tightened up its play and committed just six turnovers in the second half.

Sacramento finished the game with 24 assists – just one off the goal George Karl has set for the team of 25 per game.

The Kings out-rebounded the Clippers 49-42.

DeMarcus Cousins led the Kings in scoring with 32 points. Cousins also grabbed 13 rebounds to make it a double-double performance.

Rudy Gay scored 16 points. Darren Collison put up 13 points to go with six assists. Kosta Koufos scored 10 points, Marco Belinelli recored nine points, Omri Casspi scored 5 and Rajon Rondo 5.

Belinelli dished out seven assists while Rondo added four of his own.

Coach Karl used 11 players in the game in varying configurations. Several times the Kings went with a three guard look.

Clippers

The key the Los Angeles victory was their shooting. The Clippers shot .525 (42-for-80) from the field and .316 (6-for-19) from beyond the 3-point line.

The Clippers were led by Blake Griffin’s 33 points. Griffin seemed to be able to score at will in the first half. He scored 20 of his 33 points in the first half.

Guards Chris Paul and JJ Redick combined for 33 points. Paul scored 18 and made it a double-double night by adding in 11 assists. Redick put up 15 points shooting 5-for-11 in the game.

Center DeAndre Jordan played much of the game in foul trouble but managed to score eight points and grab 12 rebounds. Jordan also added in four blocked shots.

Jamal Crawford (11 points) and Paul Pierce (12 points) played significant minutes coming off the bench.

What they had to say after the game

“I liked the flow of the whole game except for the first quarter,” said Kings head coach George Karl. “The first quarter we had seven turnovers and not much pace. They are a very good basketball team that knows how to win close games.”

“We didn’t play great,” explained Clippers head coach Doc Rivers. “We made a lot of turnovers, unforced errors, but it was like a team win. We bring Paul (Pierce) in, he makes a shot. We take him out. We put Austin (Rivers) in, he makes a steal. Come out of a timeout and DJ (DeAndre Jordan) gets the dunk. That’s how you want to win really. Execution is very important and we did that tonight.”

“I think it was a good thing for us. We talked about it a lot and that we still got to figure some things out. We have to figure out our identity, the new faces and stuff like that but at the end of the day you have to win and figure it out at the same time,” said Clippers guard Chris Paul.

Up next

The Clippers traveled back to Los Angeles where they will play their home opener on Thursday night versus the Dallas Mavericks.

The Kings have Thursday off and will return to action on Friday night when they host the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Kings and Clippers will face off again on Saturday night in Los Angeles.

Kings waive Stockton

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stockton

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings have waived guard David Stockton. The Kings were carrying 16 players and needed to reduce the roster to 15 before October 28th.

Charlie O and Lee Leonard predicted that Stockton would be “the odd man out” on the Kings Weekly Podcast on Sportsradioservice.com. The Kings have depth at the guard position and there was not room for an extra point guard.

Stockton played for the Kings D-League team in Reno for most of the 2014-15 season. He was signed by the Kings to a 10-day contract and then to a contract for the 2015-16 season.

By waiving Stockton now, he has been given a better chance to be signed by another NBA team before the beginning of the season next week.

Kings beat the Pelicans in Kentucky

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NBAE/Getty Images
NBAE/Getty Images

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Kentucky Wildcats capped off their “Midnight Madness Weekend” by hosting a NBA preseason game between the Sacramento Kings and the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night. The Wildcats had three of the top 10 basketball recruits in the nation on campus for the big weekend.

The Kings – Pelicans game featured four former Kentucky players (three of whom played for head coach John Calipari) and two of Calipari’s former Memphis players. The Kings DeMarcus Cousins and Willie Cauley-Stein played for Kentucky under Calipari. Rajon Rondo played for Tubby Smith at Kentucky.

The Pelicans star center Anthony Davis played for Calipari in Lexington. New Orleans players Tyreke Evans and Chris Douglas-Roberts played for Calipari at Memphis.

That is not a bad way to impress high school recruits. Please meet these five NBA players who I coached in college. Did you say you would like to play in “the association”?

Now on to the game

This contest was the Kings sixth and final preseason game. The next time the Kings play an opponent it will be on October 28th when they open the season with the Los Angeles Clippers in Sacramento. It was George Karl’s last opportunity to see his players in actual game situations.

The Kings started the game slowly falling behind the Pelicans 31-20 after the first quarter of play. The Kings then turned up the tempo and outscored New Orleans in each of the final three quarters.

The Kings won the game 107-98. The victory allowed Sacramento to finish the preseason with a 5-1 record. The loss dropped the Pelicans preseason record to 2-2.

Kings

Rudy Gay led the Kings attack scoring 20 points in 30 minutes of playing time. Gay made it a double-double game by pulling down 10 rebounds.

DeMarcus Cousins put up 19 points while grabbing five rebounds in his 24 minutes on the floor. Fellow Kentucky Wildcat Willie Cauley-Stein scored seven points and recorded six rebounds. The Kings other Kentucky alum – Rajon Rondo – posted three points and three assists.

Darren Collison had a strong game for the Kings scoring 19 points, grabbing seven rebounds while dishing out five assists. Collison shot 8-for-11 from the field.

Omri Casspi added 16 points and seven rebounds. Kosta Koufos scored 11 points in 14 minutes of playing time.

As a team, the Kings shot .447 (38-for-85) from the floor. They shot just .273 (6-for-22) from 3-point range. Sacramento hit 25 of 34 free throw attempts (.735).

The Kings won the battle in the paint as they outscored the Pelicans 58-31 down low. Sacramento also won the battle on the boards pulling down 50 rebounds to just 45 for New Orleans.

Sacramento had only 14 assists in the game but also committed only 14 turnovers (four in the second half). Karl wants the assist total be at 25 per game, but he will live with 14 turnovers.

Pelicans

Ryan Anderson led the Pelicans scoring with 20 points going 6-for-14 from the floor.

Former Kentucky star Anthony Davis put up 19 points shooting 7-for-15 from the field. Davis was 2-for-4 from 3-point land.

New Orleans shot 34-for-79 (.430) in the game.

Up next

For the Kings, it is lots of scrimmages until the 28th of October when they open the season at home with the Clippers.

The Pelicans close out their preseason with the Rockets in Houston on Monday night.

Kings defeat Lakers, 107-100, in Sin City

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by Michael Martinez

picture credit Google Images

SACRAMENTO- Lady luck was on the Kings side tonight as they continued to show excellent team offense with 7 players in double figures while adding 26 teams assists, even with All Star Center Demarcus Cousins sitting out. The Kings’ passing and good shooting allowed them to hold a lead throughout the game. The Kings beat the Lakers, 107-100, at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Kings started off slow in the 1st quarter as the Lakers lead for almost the first half of the quarter. However, Rajon Rondo once again stepped up for his team and showed that he is not only a passer. Rondo scored the ball well and the point guard known for horrible shooting, shot 3 for 5 from the field in the 1st quarter, scoring 7 points and adding 3 assists. He finished the game with 11 points, shooting 5 for 9 from the field, 1 for 4 behind the 3 point line, and added 6 assists in 25 minutes of play. Marco Belinelli also did a good job of scoring the ball for the Kings with 5 points, shooting 2 for 3 from the field. The free agent signings helped give the Kings a 31-27 lead heading into the 2nd quarter.

Again the Kings 2nd quarter woes continued, giving up a 5-0 run to start the quarter. The defense was lackluster until Eric Moreland came up big defensively with a couple blocks and added 6 points on the offensive end. Belinelli began to heat up again as he hit a couple of threes and Darren Collison continued that charge. The Kings got out on an 8-0 run until Lou Williams hit a pair of free throws. To finish out the half, Kosta Koufos, who replaced Cousins in the starting line up, tipped in a buzzer beater to give the Kings a 63-51 lead. At the end of the half, the Kings shot the ball 53.5% from the field with 15 assists.

To begin the 3rd quarter, Rondo made the first bucket of the half off an assist from Koufos. From there the Kings continued to push the ball around the perimeter while also getting the ball inside. Rondo assisted Rudy Gay who filled the lane in really well to give the Kings a 16 point lead. Gay finished the game with a double-double, 10 points with 11 rebounds in 24 minutes of play, although he shot 3 for 12 from the field. But the Kings defense struggled once more giving up a 7-0 run to the Lakers. Ben McLemore, who finished with 11 points on 3 for 9 shooting from the field, 2 for 5 behind the arc in 25 minutes, made a big 3 pointer to stop the Lakers in their tracks. Nonetheless, the offense for the Kings kept their lead to double digits. The big story of the 3rd quarter was Kobe Bryant leaving the quarter with a left leg contusion and sitting out for the rest of the game. Bryant finished with 10 points, going 4 for 12 from the field and his fadeaway jumper looked good early in the game. And Belinelli, the Kings top scorer of the night, once again shot the ball well to finish the first 3 quarters with 17 points, going 5 for 9 from the field and 3 for 5 on 3 point field goals in 23 minutes of play, shooting 50% from the field. The Kings lead to end the 3rd was 88-74, and their field goal percentage was 51.7%, with a 3 point field goal percentage of 40%.

As the 4th quarter got underway, Eric Moreland came up big with 2 more blocks and showed Coach Karl he is a huge asset on defense. The Kings held a lead throughout the 4th quarter, but let the Lakers make the game a little closer. Collison once again came up big and did a great job of scoring the ball while distributing to his teammates. Towards the end of the 4th, the reserves came in and D’Angelo Russell tried to make it interesting scoring 6 points in the final minute.

Collison finished the game with 16 points, 2 rebounds and 7 assists. The final Kings player in double figures was Moreland who scored 10 points in 15 minutes going 5 for 6 from the field. Moreland also tallied 4 blocks with 5 rebounds and revitalized the Kings effortless defense.

The overall team effort, ultimately leading to a win, now puts the Kings at 4-1 during the 2015 preseason. The Kings’ offense looks sharp as they continue to swing the ball and push it inside or find the open man, finishing with a 45.6% field goal percentage with 38 points in the paint. If the Kings can get their defense on the right path and pass the ball as well as they have this entire preseason, the 2015-16 regular season could be an exciting one in the City of Trees.

Kings Celebrate Breast Cancer Awareness Night in preseason home opener with 95-92 team win over the Spurs

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

photo credits google images

SACRAMENTO- On a night where the Sacramento Kings honored those effected by breast cancer, they kept all Kings fans happy defeating the San Antonio Spurs, 95-92 at Sleep Train Arena. The win can be attributed to the Kings big 3, Demarcus Cousins, Rajon Rondo and Rudy Gay as well as Willie Cauley-Stein’s defense. The Kings ball movement was outstanding for most of the night and their defense showed signs of improvement as well.

For the Kings it was a tale of odds and evens as they played well in the 1st and 3rd quarters, however their play declined in the 2nd and 4th quarters. Although they started off slow in the 1st quarter, strong shooting by Rudy Gay allowed the Kings to take the lead, 19-14. Gay’s solid shooting, 10 for 13 from the field and 2 for 3 behind the arc in 30 minutes of play, allowed the Kings to hold a lead at the end of the 3rd quarter and maintain it in the 4th quarter even though Gay only played half of the 4th.

When asked about his hot shooting, Gay humbly said “I’ve just been practicing and shooting, doing what NBA players are doing.”

As the Kings played mostly reserves in the 2nd quarter, the Spurs cut into the lead with a 7-0 run after the 1st quarter break. The Kings were not closing out on their defenders and allowed Rasual Butler to score 7 points on 3 consecutive possessions and this allowed the Spurs to come back and tie the game at the half, 47-47.

The Kings came out of the 3rd quarter with fire under their belts and Rajon Rondo really had a chance to shine. After a good 1st quarter and playing very little in the 2nd, Rondo distributed the ball well and ran some uptempo offense in the 3rd that allowed the Kings to get easy points in the paint and open shots behind the three point line. Totaling 4 assists in the first half, Rondo added 6 assists in the 3rd quarter and wound up with 6 points, 10 assists and 8 rebounds almost getting a triple double in almost 25 minutes of play. He also showed tremendous ball handling skills and tossed Gay a big alley-oop to get the crowd pumped up in the 3rd. Rondo rested in the 4th quarter as Coach George Karl decided to keep him off the court.

Gay was asked about Rondo heating up in the 3rd.

He confidently said “That’s what I know he can do, it’s just been a matter of time.”

Rondo was not in present in the locker room for comment.

Demarcus Cousins was the final offensive piece as he totaled a double-double scoring 17 points with 10 boards and 1 assist in 28 minutes of play. In the 3rd, Cousins did a good job of scoring the ball with his usual mid range jumper as he totaled 8 points in the 3rd. Cousins also sat out the 4th quarter as the Kings took an 11 point lead over the Spurs, 78-67.

The 4th quarter was mainly a quarter of reserves similar to the 2nd and it showed when the Kings let the Spurs go on a 10-0 run to start the quarter. The offense looked dormant as Dave Stockton could not move the ball nearly as well as Rondo. The Kings closed out the game after they took a time out following the Spurs big run and Willie Cauley-Stein subbed in helping protect the rim well and get rebounds when needed. Cauley-Stein’s defense was outstanding all night as he held LaMarcus Aldridge to 8 points on 3 of 10 shooting from the field. Cauley-Stein also helped win the game for the Kings with an offensive rebound and kick out to Marco Belinelli who found his shot late and sunk 2 free throws to ultimately give the Kings a W, winning 95-92.

Coach Karl praised Cauley-Stein’s effort when asked about his confidence in their 6th overall draft pick.

Karl said “He’s solid, he’s a good player.”

Even after a win against a playoff caliber team, minus Duncan, Ginobli, Parker, Diaw and Coach Popovich, the Kings can make improvements. The defense can close out even better and their 23 turnovers leading to 24 points may be a point of concern as the regular season approaches. Nonetheless, the win for the Kings is great heading into the regular season as they proved they can close out games and their defense has improved by only allowing 92 points tonight. The Kings are now 2-1 in the preseason.

I would like to finish this article by asking everyone to keep one of our staff members, Jeff Hall, in there thoughts and prayers as he continues to battle for his life in the hospital. We’re pulling for you Jeff and know you are strong.

Suns Reserves Outshine Kings

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

The Sacramento Kings fell to the Phoenix Suns 102-98 Wednesday night at the Talking Stick Resort Arena for their first loss of the preseason.

Rudy Gay led the team with 27 points, DeMarcus Cousins had a team-high 8 rebounds and 15 points and Marco Belinelli chipped in 12 points off the bench. Point guard Rajon Rondo, signed in the offseason, scored 5 points on 2 field goals over 5 attempts and added 5 assists. Darren Collison also dropped a quintet of dimes to match the Kings game-high.

In his second season with the Suns, TJ Warren opened his preseason with a hot start. The former North Carolina State forward scored 17 points off the bench. NBA journeyman Jon Leuer also scored 17 points off the pine, picking up a double-double with his game-high 13 rebounds. Guards Brandon Knight (16) and Eric Bledsoe (13) were the only two starters to break double figures in scoring.

The two teams traded leads 11 times, with 10 lead changes coming in the first three quarters. Sacramento held a 3-point lead, 79-76, but the Suns outscored them 26-19 down the stretch to put the Kings preseason record at 1-1 following Monday’s 109-105 overtime win in Portland.

The two teams shot the ball at a 40% clip, but the Suns managed to haul in 55 rebounds to the Kings 46 as the difference maker. The Kings were also outrebounded 52-50 on Monday.

Sacramento gets its first dose of home cooking during the exhibition slate tomorrow night. The Kings return to the Sleep Train Arena to face perennial Western Conference powers San Antonio in the second half of a back-to-back.