Game Preview: Kings At Spurs

(AP) -- After a near-disastrous skid during their longest road trip of the season, the San Antonio Spurs seem to be revitalized following a win over the Sacramento Kings.

The defending champs can look for the exact same result Wednesday night when they return home for the first time in nearly a month to face the Kings.

San Antonio's nine-game road swing opened with five losses in seven games and four in a row before the Spurs (36-23) downed Sacramento 107-96 on Friday.

A fifth consecutive defeat would have marked San Antonio's longest losing streak in nearly four years.

"We're just keeping things together. Don't panic," Tim Duncan said. "In some respects, we lose games, we lose three or four in a row and people start to panic. They want to change one thing or change everything. We have to stay steady within and understand that it's a work in progress, and we're not in as bad of a position as it may seem."

After trouncing Phoenix 101-74 on Saturday to wrap up the trip, the Spurs will play their first home game since Feb. 6 as they kick off a stretch of six straight on their own floor. They've averaged 104.3 points at the AT&T Center compared with 97.4 on the road, and have won eight of their last nine in San Antonio.

"Getting a couple home games under our belt will be great for us," Duncan said. "We finished the road trip well, and we'll continue to build on that. We're starting to see a rhythm within our team. Hopefully we can add another win onto that and feel good about ourselves."

DeMarcus Cousins had 25 points in 27 minutes as Sacramento (21-37) snapped a nine-game series skid with a 112-104 home win Nov. 15, but lost 112-104 with Cousins sidelined due to an illness 11 days later.

Cousins missed Friday's loss to San Antonio and Sunday's defeat against Portland, but returned to the lineup Tuesday with 22 points in Sacramento's 124-86 win at New York.

After the victory, coach George Karl made sure to illustrate how Cousins' impact goes beyond just scoring.

"Without `Cuz' we haven't been able to do a lot of them in the last two games, but I thought his passing was big time," Karl said. "Cuz did a good job of orchestrating the first unit and Andre (Miller) did a good job of orchestrating the bench. There is a lot of confidence out there because of their passing."

Miller has shot 58.6 percent from the field in six games since joining Sacramento on Feb. 19, and posted his first double-double since April 6, 2013, with 12 points and 10 assists Sunday.

Miller was one of 10 Kings to record an assist Tuesday, finishing with three of their 26.

"I think we did a good job of sharing the ball," Cousins said. "Everyone was involved tonight. I think we communicated well early on. I think everyone played within the flow of the game, so it made it a lot easier."

Rudy Gay had a team-high 25 points in just 27 minutes, giving him a fourth game with at least 24 in his last six contests.

The Kings have lost 14 of 15 in San Antonio.

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