The Sacramento Kings rolled into Madison Square Garden Sunday afternoon and took advantage of an injury-riddled New York Knicks team. The Kings used a balance attack to pick up their 27th win on the season, knocking off the Knicks by a final of 88-80.
DeMarcus Cousins dominated the glass, grabbing a team-high 20 rebounds to go along with 24 points. Cousins added four assists and blocked a pair of shots in the win. This was the tenth 20-point, 20-rebound game of Cousins’ career.
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Rudy Gay has had a rough month of March, averaging just 13.8 points per game through nine contests. He shook off his struggles Sunday night, posting 17 points on 8-for-20 shooting from the field.
Darren Collison put on his track shoes and attack the Knicks on the break. Starting for the injured Ben McLemore for the sixth time in the last seven games, Collison dropped in 13 points on 3-for-5 shooting from long range. He added six assists and three steals 40 minutes of error-free action.
Needing a punch off the bench, George Karl turned to Omri Casspi and he delivered 15 points and five rebounds in 19 minutes as a reserve.
With Carmelo Anthony sidelined with a migraine, Kurt Rambis needed someone to pick up the scoring. Surprisingly, it was veteran center Robin Lopez who stepped to the plate. Lopez played strong defense on Cousins on the defensive end and on the offensive end he managed to score 23 points while grabbing a career-high 20 rebounds.
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Rookie Kristaps Porzingis has struggled of late with his shot, but he still managed to add 13 points on 6-for-17 shooting. Jerian Grant added 14 points and former Kings forward Derrick Williams added 11 in the loss.
STANDOUT PERFORMER -- The battle of the bigs ended up being the highlight of this game. Cousins posted his 43rd double-double of the season, but Lopez matched him stride for stride. Cousins got the win, so he’s the man of the match, but Lopez played very well in the loss.
TURNING POINT -- The Kings tightened up their defense in the fourth, holding the Knicks to just 15 points in the final quarter. If you take away the 35 point second quarter for the Knicks, the Kings played a solid defensive game.
INJURY UPDATE -- Willie Cauley-Stein missed his second straight game due to flu-like symptoms and Ben McLemore missed his seventh straight contest with a non-displaced fracture of the right ring finger.
WHAT'S NEXT -- The Kings fly to Chicago after the game where they will take on the Bulls Monday night in the second game of a back-to-back.