Spurs 106, Kings 88
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Forward Kawhi Leonard scored 24 points, and guard Patty Mills came off the bench to score seven of his nine points during a key run to start the fourth quarter as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Sacramento Kings 106-88 at Sleep Train Arena on Monday.
Mills hit two layups and a 3-pointer to help San Antonio open the final period with an 23-12 blitz that made the difference. The Spurs twice pulled away after Sacramento rallied from double-digit deficits.
Forward LaMarcus Aldridge finished with 16 points and nine rebounds, and center Tim Duncan had 11 points and 14 rebounds for San Antonio, which beat Sacramento for the fourth straight time. San Antonio, which has finished above .500 on the road for a record 18 consecutive seasons, has won three of its first five away from home and five of six overall since losing its opener.
Center DeMarcus Cousins returned from a four-game absence and led Sacramento with 21 points and 12 rebounds. But the Kings played without guards Darren Collison (left hamstring strain) and Seth Curry (right ankle sprain) and lost their sixth straight overall and their fourth in a row at home. Their 1-7 start matches the 1990-91 and 1988-89 clubs for the worst in the team's Sacramento history.
Cousins, who hadn't played because of a strained right Achilles' tendon, played 32 minutes and labored up and down the court for much of the contest. But he finished with his 200th career double-double and joined Chris Webber as the only Sacramento players to record that many.
Sacramento forward Marco Belinelli scored 17 points against his former team, and forward Omri Casspi had 16 off the bench. Point guard Rajon Rondo had eight points, 12 assists and six rebounds in 47 minutes of action.
The Spurs, the NBA's second-best shooting team through the first week and a half, struggled to keep the Kings at arms length until the final quarter. Guard Tony Parker and Leonard each hit 3-pointers and scored five points apiece during a 14-2 run that put the Spurs ahead 69-57 in the middle of the third.
But Cousins scored six points, all on free throws, over the final 4:11 of the quarter, and the Kings responded with a 12-2 run of their own and trailed by only three entering the final period.
NOTES: The Kings have played only three of their eight games with C DeMarcus Cousins, F Rudy Gay and G Darren Collison each in uniform. The three, who were the team's leaders in scoring and minutes last season, suited up together in only 32 of Sacramento's 82 games last season. ... Seven of the Spurs in uniform Monday were making more than half of their shots from the field entering Monday, with G Patrick Mills and F David West leading the way at 57.1 percent. The Spurs were shooting 48.1 percent as a team in the season's first two weeks, second only to Oklahoma City's 48.4 percent. ... Sacramento G Seth Curry was unavailable for the second straight game after aggravating an ankle injury warming up for the contest. ... The Spurs next travel to Portland to face the Trail Blazers on Wednesday, capping a stretch in which they played six of their first eight games on the road. ... The Kings' next eight games will be against Eastern Conference teams. Sacramento went 11-19 teams from the East a season ago.