Lakers at Kings
DeMarcus Cousins is back and Tyrone Corbin is behind the bench, but the Sacramento Kings are still trying to figure a way out of the loss column. A date with the Los Angeles Lakers, who visit on Sunday, could snap the Kings out of their five-game funk. Cousins collected 27 points and 10 rebounds in his return from a 10-game absence due to viral meningitis but was off the mark on a game-winning attempt in a 108-107 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Lakers had their own star come up empty on a game-winner on Friday, when Kobe Bryant was off the mark in the final second of a 104-103 home loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Bryant passed Michael Jordan for third place on the all-time scoring list last weekend but is 11-of-41 from the field in back-to-back losses since, including a season low-tying nine points on Friday. Sacramento went 2-8 without Cousins and has dropped 12 of 14 overall.
TV: 6 p.m. ET, TWC SportsNet (Los Angeles), CSN California (Sacramento)
ABOUT THE LAKERS (8-18): Bryant scored nine of his 32 points in the final 3 1/2 minutes against the Kings at home on Dec. 9 to fuel a 98-95 win, which sparked a three-game winning streak. The Lakers got season-best contributions from Ed Davis (18 points) and Ronnie Price (14) on Friday but three missed jumpers from Bryant in the final 1:23 doomed the team. "Just overall fatigue," Los Angeles coach Byron Scott explained to reporters of Bryant’s struggles. “Wednesday’s practice, I thought he probably did a little too much. He wanted to compete in practice and get guys going. Ultimately, that probably bit us in the butt a little bit.”
ABOUT THE KINGS (11-15): Sacramento made the move to Corbin as part of an overall effort to push the pace on offense and shot 56.7 percent from the field against the Bucks but turned the ball over 21 times. Cousins played 33 minutes in his return and went 8-of-12 from the field and 11-of-13 from the free-throw line. “I felt a little winded in the beginning, got my second wind (and) everything else was fine,” Cousins told reporters. “I’m still not at the level I was before but I was able to play through.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Kings F Rudy Gay has scored 20 or more points in three straight games and nine of the last 11.
2. Los Angeles F Carlos Boozer has scored in double figures in six straight games since moving to the bench.
3. Sacramento took the last meeting at home 107-102 on Apr. 2, but has dropped six of seven in the series.