Game 25 Notes- Sacramento Kings Beat Houston Rockets
The Sacramento Kings improved to 10-15 on the season after taking down the Houston Rockets last night 107-97, winning their third straight game. Although it wasn’t the prettiest game to watch, a win is a win. Below are some noteworthy statistics gathers from the Sacramento Kings community:
After last night’s win, the Kings have now won seven of their past nine home games.
The Kings snapped their 7 game losing streak to the Rockets, who don’t look to be the same team that made the Western Conference Finals last year.
Kings got their second 3-game winning streak of the season. The last streak came against the Pistons, Nets, and Raptors.
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Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings forward DeMarcus Cousins (15) reacts at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
- Omri Casspi continued to play well as a starter. He finished with 19 points and went 3 of 4 from downtown. Omri currently ranks 15th in the league in 3-point shooting percentage at 43%.
- Rudy Gay recorded a career-high six steals and his third double-double of the season. Rudy’s defense has really stepped up over the past week.
- According to the NBA, this is the first time since 2004 that a team has turned the ball over this many times and won.
Both teams played extremely sloppy basketball. The Kings and Rockets combined for 49 turnovers. The Rockets turned the ball over 21 times (7 for James Harden). The Kings turned the ball over 28 times (8 from Darren Collision).
Despite the eight turnovers from Darren Collision, he played extremely well as the starting point guard. He played the part of Rajon Rondo dishing out 13 assists. In addition, he was three rebounds away from a triple double. He finished the night with 14 points and 7 rebounds.
Tuesday night marked the first time in the Sacramento-era in which the team won despite turning over the ball over 29 times.
The Rockets are a team that depends on dribble penetration to a kick out the three ball. In the previous two meetings the Rockets shot (15-36 good for 42% and 16-34 on 47%). Last night, The Rockets missed 27 of 39 three point shots, which is good for 31%.
Last night was the team’s fourth consecutive game in which they held their opponent to a low 40 percent shooting. The players seem to be buying into playing defense.
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Although James Harden scored 33 points, the Kings allowed last season’s MVP Runner-Up to score just nine points in the final quarter, and allowed just one basket in the game’s final three-plus minutes.
Kings shot 51% from the field last night largely due to the horrific defense by the Rockets. The Rockets are currently ranked 28th in the NBA in points allowed (Tied with the Kings).
The Sacramento Kings started the season 1-7, and through 25 games are exactly 1 game out of the 8th spot of the Western Conference standings.
The Kings will look to extend their winning streak on Friday night in Minnesota against a young and up and coming team in the Timberwolves.
Go Kings!