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 The Kings made sure they didn't make the same mistake Sunday
against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
After building a 59-44 halftime lead, the Kings rolled to a 103-84
rout of Cleveland, handing the Cavaliers a season-high fifth
straight loss.
Sacramento center DeMarcus Cousins scored 26 points and grabbed 13
rebounds for his 21st double-double of the season. Forward Rudy Gay
had 23 points, and guard Darren Collison added 16 points and six
assists.
"The last game, we let it slip from us," Gay said of the Kings'
108-118 loss to Denver. "We progressed today. I think we took a big
step in the right direction."
Cousins also had five assists, four steals and three blocked shots,
helping the Kings (16-21) win for the third time in five games.
Sacramento is 5-8 since Tyrone Corbin replaced Michael Malone as
head coach.
"We got to find a way to be consistent," Cousins said. "Can't come
out one night and be good defending and the next night be a totally
different team. We've got to find that consistency."
 The Cavaliers played their eighth straight game without LeBron
James. The star forward is out with a strained left knee and lower
back, and Cleveland is 1-7 during his absence.
Forward Kevin Love led the Cavaliers with 25 points and 10 rebounds
for his 21st double-double of the season, and guard Kyrie Irving
added 21 points and seven assists.
Center Timofey Mozgov made his starting debut for the Cavaliers in
his second game since being traded to Cleveland from Denver. He had
14 points and 12 rebounds.
The Cavaliers (19-19) fell to .500 for the first time since Nov. 26,
when they were 7-7.
"We're going through a lot of stuff right now, honestly," Cavaliers
coach David Blatt said. "We're going through a lot of trials and
tribulations, a lot of changes, a lot of adjustments on the fly.
Sometimes that catches up with you a little bit. Tonight was not a
step forward."
The Kings committed a season-low five turnovers to go with 20
assists.
"I think we just did a great job of taking care of the ball
tonight," Cousins said. "When double-teams came, kicked it out. Made
the right plays. I don't think we tried to force anything tonight."
Cousins scored 17 points and grabbed five rebounds in the first half
as the Kings built a 15-point lead. Gay added 12 first-half points,
and the Kings committed only one turnover.
Irving led the Cavaliers with 17 first-half points, while Love added
14 points and six rebounds. They combined for just 15 points in the
second half.
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"We got some of the shots that we wanted," Irving said. "A few of
them didn't go down, but at the end of the day, it's going to boil
down to us getting back in transition, including myself. In order to
be a competing team, we need to get some stops. When our offense is
stagnant, we need to trust our defense a little more."
Irving drilled three consecutive 3-point shots late in the first
quarter, which ended with Sacramento leading 30-29. However, the
Kings outscored Cleveland 29-15 in the second quarter.
The Kings opened the third quarter on a 15-8 run, extending the
advantage to 74-52 when Gay drilled a 3-point shot. Sacramento led
85-64 at the end of the third.
In their loss to Denver, the Kings built a 60-54 halftime lead but
were outscored 36-15 in the third quarter.
"We were just talking about how we know we let the last game slip
away," Collison said. "It's a learning process. To be able to come
out in the second half and not let this one slip away, to put all 48
minutes together, it's a learning process."
NOTES: Cavaliers coach David Blatt said it is very possible that F
LeBron James (left knee/lower back strain) would return at some
point during the team's road trip, which stretches three more games.
Blatt said he hoped James would be able to do some "live" work in
practice Monday for the first time since being sidelined. "We've
entered this process with the express idea of getting him back 100
percent," Blatt said before the game. "When he's ready, that's when
he'll play." ... Cavaliers F Shawn Marion (left hip strain) missed
his second straight game but hopes to play Tuesday against the
Phoenix Suns. ... Kings G Ramon Sessions (lower back strain) and F
Omri Casspi (left knee bone contusion) remain sidelined. ... The
Kings beat the Cavaliers 124-80 last season in Sacramento.
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