Kings Booted By Spurs, 106-88
For 42 minutes, the Sacramento Kings kept the San Antonio Spurs within striking distance.
That's when things went off the rails.
A 19-2 San Antonio run midway through the fourth quarter opened up a twenty-two point advantage, putting away a 106-88 win for the Spurs on Monday night. Sacramento, who welcomed back DeMarcus Cousins after a four game absence, led by one after the first quarter, but eventually felt the effects of being shorthanded. Darren Collison (hamstring) and Seth Curry (ankle) were both inactive, leading to a 48-minute night for Rajon Rondo and a 34-19 deficit in the fourth quarter.
Cousins, still hurting from the strained achilles that kept him sidelined, turned in 21 points and 12 rebounds, his third double-double in four games. Rondo, playing the entirety of the game for the first time in his career, had 8 points, 12 assists, and 6 rebounds, but 9 turnovers.
Kawhi Leonard had a game-high 24 points for the Spurs (5-2), who shot 52.9% from the field and recorded assists on 34 of their 46 made shots.
Marco Belinelli and Omri Casspi paced the bench for Sacramento with 17 and 16 points, respectively.
The Kings (1-7) host Detroit on Wednesday.