The DeMarcus Cousins Administration Issued An Executive Order, Top Warriors 109-106 In Overtime
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Sacramento, Calif. – It has been a bouncy season for the Sacramento Kings to say the least. At times, the team has been caught flatlining and other times resurrecting itself with surprising victories. But one thing the DeMarcus Cousins Administration does not do – throw in the towel during a fight.
The Kings proved their resiliency by taking out the Golden State Warriors 109-106 in overtime at Golden 1 Center. The victory stopped a four-game losing streak at home, and more importantly, halted a 13-game stretch to the Warriors where Sacramento failed to win each time.
The Kings (20-31, 9-14 G1C) also put the brakes on a three-game losing streak. Whatever the case may be, the Kings have accomplished beating the Cleveland Cavaliers and Warriors this season, two teams that fought it out in the NBA Finals last season.
Obviously, it was all-or-nothing thing for the Kings. They rebounded splendidly from the 105-103 loss to the Phoenix Suns at home the night before. The Periodical Table of elements was exposed by the Kings for this victory.
“Our chemistry is good, guys like each other, and they play for each other,” Kings head coach Dave Joerger said. “If you don’t have that you can splinter and fall apart. This team is not at that point.”
Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins looks to put a move on Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant. Publicity Agents photo art by T. Ray Harvey. Feb. 4, 2017.
DeMarcus Cousins finished with 32 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists for the Kings. Darren Collison added 18 points, three assists, two rebounds. Matt Barnes had 11 points and 14 rebounds off the bench.
The Kings got 45 points from their reserves. All five players from the bench scored to make it a collective effort. Anthony Tolliver chipped with 11 points.
“‘There are no excuses.’ It's something we’ve been preaching for a long time,” Cousins said. “I'm so proud of my team. We came out and got a big win. We competed from start to finish.”
Stephen Curry had 35 points, nine assists, four rebounds, and three assists while Klay Thompson knocked down 26 points and grabbed five rebounds for the Warriors (43-8, 21-5 road). Kevin Durant had 10 points off of 2-for-10 shooting from the floor. He also had five-blocked shots.
The Warriors made 15 of 44 shots from beyond the arc, but only made 36 of 87 shots from the floor at 41.4 percent. Draymond Green had 16 points on top of eight rebounds and six assists. No other player for the Warriors cracked the double digits in scoring.
“It was one of those situations where our offense affected our defense tonight,” Curry said. “It’s usually the other way around. We probably would be saying the same thing if we would have won. But we have to start off the game better.”
Sacramento Kings forward helped seal the deal defensively in the Kings victory over the Golden State Warriors. Publicity Agents photo art by T. Ray Harvey. Feb. 4, 2017.
The Kings made 23 of 42 shots from the field, 54.8 percent, to tie the Warriors 56-56 at halftime. Cousins had 15 points in 18 minutes, but Willie Cauley-Stein’s 12 points off the bench kept Sacramento in the game. Cauley-Stein ended the game with 14 points off the bench.
Also, Barnes had eight points and five rebounds before the break. Green left for the locker room before halftime with a right knee contusion. Patrick McCaw started the second half for the Warriors. But Green entered the game on the next timeout.
Things went bananas when Green was hit with a technical foul with 3:34 remaining in the third quarter. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr went ballistic shouting expletives to the officials while walking on the court.
Kerr’s actions promptly triggered double-technical fouls and he earned a trip to the locker room, complimentary of the officials. The Kings’ lead 78-73 at this point. The Warriors made two straight 3-pointers to go up 79-78. But the game was tied 82-82 to start the fourth quarter.
"I deserved to be ejected. So I have no complaints," Kerr said following the game. "I was angry about some calls, I got mad, and I like I said, I deserved to get kicked out."
The game ended in regulation tied 98-98. Barnes made a 3-point basket to start extended play and the Kings never trailed. The Warriors did cut the Kings 107-106 on a dunk by Green with 41 seconds left. Collison made two free throws later. With 2.5 seconds left, Green missed a trey with with 00.2 seconds left and time expired.
The play of the game was by Tolliver who altered seven-foot shot by Curry with 3.4 seconds remaining. Collison was there for the rebound and was fouled by Andre Iguodala.
“It shows this team has a lot of character and a lot of fight,” Barnes of the Kings. “Especially coming off the loss we had last night. Complete team effort. I think this was our most complete game of the season."
By T. Ray Harvey | PA Public Information Officer and Photographic Artist
Twitter: Tony Ray Harvey @PublicityAgents
PA’s PRESS INFORMATION:
The Golden State Warriors 13-game win streak against the Kings matched the longest stretch against Sacramento and is tied for the third-longest streak against any opponent in the Warriors franchise history.
The Sacramento Kings are 2.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets for the eighth spot in the NBA Playoffs. The Kings play the Chicago Bulls on Feb. 6, the third game of their six-game homestand.
T. Ray (Antonio) Harvey is a Public Information Officer and Photographic Artist for Publicity Agents. Harvey is also the author of The HOMICIDAL HANDYMAN OF OAK PARK: MORRIS SOLOMON JR.
