A Royal Pain
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Highs and Lows: Sacramento Kings Get Pounded By The Grizzlies

By Rafe Wong

Jan 20, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA; Sacramento Kings forward DeMarcus Cousins (15) drives against Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol (33) in the first half at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 20, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA; Sacramento Kings forward DeMarcus Cousins (15) drives against Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol (33) in the first half at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Sacramento Kings tonight by a score of 107-91, making this game the fourth consecutive loss for the purple and white.

Listed down below are the highs and lows that happened in tonight’s game pertaining to the Kings.

HIGHS

DeMarcus Cousins: DeMarcus Cousins remains to be a beast on the court for Sacramento. For the night, the All-Star big recorded 19 points and 10 rebounds, recording his 22nd double-double for the season. The Kings need Cousins to be efficient the way he was tonight and some in order for the team to make a legit push for the playoffs.

Garrett Temple: Garrett Temple ended up being Sacramento’s second-best offensive player tonight. Scoring 14 points on 5-9 shooting from the court, it was a pleasant surprise to see Temple contribute for the Kings on both ends of the floor.

Rookie Play: Because the Kings trailed so much in the fourth quarter, it caused Dave Joerger to go with Malachi Richardson and Skal Labissiere for the final six minutes of the game. Labissiere finished the game recording 3 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal. Richardson finished the game recording 1 point, 1 rebound, and 1 assist.  Not much went well for the Kings tonight, but at least the team was able to evaluate how the future of their franchise can fare against NBA competition so far.

LOWS

Darren Collison: With Rudy Gay officially out for the season, Darren Collison needs to step up and become the second scoring option for the Kings going forward. Unfortunately for the Kings, Collison didn’t fare so well tonight as he recorded just 4 points on 2-7 shooting from the floor. Collison has proven that he is the second-best scorer on the Kings’ current roster, but he needs to start showing it more on a consistent basis.

Defending the Three: The Grizzlies are not a good team when it comes to three-point shooting. For the season, they shoot 34.7% from the perimeter which has them ranked 22nd among their peers. But for some reason, the Kings always let their opponents shoot at a higher rate than normally. For tonight’s game, the Grizzlies ended up making 39.3% of their three-point attempts, almost five points higher than their average for the season.

Rebounding Game: The physical play of Memphis was just too much for the Kings tonight on the boards. For the night, Memphis outrebounded Sacramento by a score of 58-35 and also won the offensive rebounding matchup 15-5. As a result, the Grizzlies were able to make valuable second-chance points and increase their momentum throughout the game.

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