Kings at Wizards
The Washington Wizards got a three-game homestand off to a good start as
they attempt to overcome a poor opening stretch to the season.
Washington looks for its second straight home victory when it hosts the
Sacramento Kings on Monday.
The Wizards opened the homestand with a 109-101 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday for only their fifth victory in the past 15 games. Point guard John Wall continued his torrid play with 27 points and 12 assists for his eighth double-double of the month. Sacramento is just 3-9 on the road but one of those victories occurred Sunday when the Kings parlayed a 37-point first quarter into a 104-94 win over the Toronto Raptors. "Complete turnaround," standout center DeMarcus Cousins said afterward. "It just shows the potential of this team. We have to find a way to do this on a consistent basis."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CSN California (Sacramento), CSN Mid-Atlantic (Washington)
ABOUT THE KINGS (11-16): Point guard Rajon Rondo continued his strong season with 19 points and 13 assists against the Raptors and has put together four consecutive double-doubles. Coach George Karl describes the relationship with Rondo as a love-anger-hate type. "Right now he's our motor, he makes us go, he makes us go in a good way," Karl told reporters. "I think he enjoys my philosophies a little bit, not 100 percent in agreement. I've always had wrestling matches with most of my point guards, and this is not a bad wrestling match but we do have our wrestling match going on."
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (11-14): Washington used just eight players against Charlotte as guard Bradley Beal (leg), power forward Nene (calf) and small forward Otto Porter Jr. (thigh) were among the players sidelined with injuries. That led to Wall playing a season-high 42 minutes as he improved his December averages to 24.6 points and 10.8 assists. "I was exhausted," Wall said afterward. "I tried to find times when I could find subs and get out."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Kings have won five of the past seven meetings.
2. Washington rookie F Kelly Oubre Jr. made his first career start against Charlotte and had eight points and five rebounds.
3. Sacramento SF Rudy Gay scored 19 points against Toronto for his 10th straight double-digit outing, including five 20-point performances.