|
 Darren Collison and DeMarcus Cousins scored 22 points apiece,
sparking the Kings to a 106-98 victory over the Lakers on Tuesday
night at Staples Center.
"We got off to a bad start against Utah, a really bad start, so our
focus was to get off to a good start today and to have a defensive
presence and have an impact on the game early on," said Collison,
referring to the Kings' 108-99 loss to the Jazz on Sunday.
"Everything else would take care of itself."
Rudy Gay added 20 points and eight rebounds for the Kings, who beat
the Lakers for the seventh consecutive time. Sacramento (26-40) also
snapped a five-game skid.
Kings point guard Rajon Rondo dished out 12 assists and recorded
four steals to go along with nine points. Rondo extended his
Sacramento single-season record to 44 games with at least 10
assists.
The Kings forced the Lakers into 22 turnovers (leading to 30
points), while committing 17 themselves (leading 17 points). That,
combined with the solid start, turned out to be the difference.
 "We're athletic, we did a good job of protecting the paint and
getting out there in the open court," said Collison, who connected
on 10 of 14 shots overall and scored 17 of his points in the first
half. "Rondo, myself, (Cousins), Rudy. When we get like that on the
defensive end, we're pretty tough to beat."
Lou Williams came off the bench to score 17 points for the Lakers,
who lost their third in a row. Julius Randle and rookie D'Angelo
Russell finished with 14 points each, while Jordan Clarkson and
Larry Nance Jr. chipped in 12 points apiece. Randle also had 11
rebounds.
Kobe Bryant sat out the game after his sore right shoulder flared up
again. It was the 15th game Bryant missed this season.
Sacramento, which never trailed and led by as much as 23 points,
seized control from the start. The Kings built a double-digit lead
early and did not allow the margin to dip below that until the
fourth quarter.
The win was only the second in the last 11 outings for Sacramento.
"Our biggest problem with our season is being a consistent team,"
said Cousins, who also had three of the team's 17 steals. "We're one
team one night, and we're another team the next night. It's an
issue."
Clarkson's 3-point jumper pulled the Lakers within 94-87 with 4:23
remaining in the contest. Less than two minutes later, two foul
shots by Randle cut the deficit to 97-91, but the Kings converted a
three-point play 17 seconds later when Gay scored and Cousins was
fouled on the play. Cousins' free throw made it 100-91.
[to top of second column] |
Russell hit three free throws to reduce the lead to six again, but
Gay's runner and two free throws pushed the advantage to 104-94 with
1:54 remaining. That practically sealed it for the Kings.
"They just play harder than us all the time," Clarkson said. "We
turned the ball over a lot. Something we just have to figure out
right now."
The Kings forced the Lakers to miss eight of their initial nine
shots as Sacramento skated to a 32-15 advantage after one quarter.
Los Angeles got as close as 10 in the second quarter before
Sacramento stretched the lead to 57-41 at the break.
The Kings dictated inside, scoring 40 of their first-half points in
the paint compared to 24 for the Lakers. Overall, Sacramento
outscored Los Angeles 60-48 in that category.
"We knew this was a team that struggled on the defense a little bit,
just like us," said Nance, who also had nine boards. "We were trying
to make the home run pass instead of the easy pass sometimes. That
bit us in the butt."
NOTES: Kings C DeMarcus Cousins has scored at least 30 points 24
times this season. Cousins ranks second behind Mitch Richmond, who
recorded 26, for the most 30-point performances in a season in the
Kings' Sacramento era. Cousins, who topped 30 or more in three of
his previous four games, also has 17 30-point, 10-rebound
performances, three shy of Chris Webber's Sacramento mark for a
season. ... Los Angeles F Kobe Bryant (sore right shoulder) is
questionable for Friday's game against the Phoenix Suns. ... Lakers
reserve F Brandon Bass missed the game with a corneal abrasion in
his right eye. ... The Kings return home to face the New Orleans
Pelicans on Wednesday. ... Kings G Ben McLemore missed his fourth
consecutive game due to a right ring finger fracture.
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
