Kings' frontcourt wears down Thunder
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- DeMarcus Cousins scored 36 points, and Rudy Gay added 15 of his 17 points in the second half to lead the Sacramento Kings past the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-101 Wednesday night at the Golden 1 Center.
The two Kings forwards did their best work in the second half, combining for 30 points and nine rebounds to help Sacramento overcome another huge night by Russell Westbrook. The NBA's leader in triple-doubles with five, Westbrook finished with 31 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in 33 minutes.
Cousins' performance was just as impressive. He set the tone immediately, bullying first Steven Adams, then Enes Kanter down low when Oklahoma City refused to double him. He scored 16 points and grabbed six of his 13 rebounds in the opening quarter.
Gay came alive after halftime, making six of 12 shots in the second half, including three of four from 3-point range. He ripped home a driving dunk off a feed from Darren Collison and canned a top-of-the-arc 3-pointer on successive possessions to help Sacramento extend a 51-48 halftime lead to 87-75. He also finished with nine assists and four assists.
Collison added 21 points and six assists in 28 minutes in his second consecutive start, and Ben McLemore and Kosta Koufos added nine points apiece off the Kings' bench. Koufos also had 10 rebounds.
Sacramento (6-9) won its second straight.
The Thunder (8-8) never led in the second half and lost for the seventh time in nine games since a 6-1 start. They dropped both games in a back-to-back set against the Los Angeles Lakers and Kings and allowed at least 100 points for the ninth straight game.
For the second night in a row, a rough defensive quarter hurt Oklahoma City. The Kings put up 36 points in the third quarter, and the Thunder never got closer than 11 points in the final 12 minutes.
Victor Oladipo added 18 points for Oklahoma City, while Adams had 11. Kanter and Andre Roberson contributed 10 points apiece.
NOTES: Oklahoma City G Cameron Payne no longer is wearing a walking boot, the Oklahoman reported. The second-year player who was the 14th overall pick in the 2014 draft sustained a second fracture to his right foot on Sept. 27. The Thunder have not said when they expect him to return. ... The Kings' victory over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday officially came under protest Wednesday, according to multiple media sources. Refs waved off a potential game-tying 3-pointer at the regulation buzzer, citing an issue with the game clock's operation. ... Thunder G Russell Westbrook just missed his 43rd career triple-double. The active leader in triple-doubles, Cleveland F LeBron James, recorded his 44th on Wednesday. ... Kings G Omri Casspi, who averaged 27 minutes a game in 69 contests, 21 of them starts, last season, didn't get off the bench in five of the Kings' previous six games and is not part of coach Dave Joerger's rotation.