Kings prevail in OT to halt 13-game skid versus Warriors
SACRAMENTO -- A regional rivalry that has been egregiously one-sided for the better part of four years got an unexpected shot in the arm Saturday night at the Golden 1 Center.
A spirited effort by the Sacramento Kings put the Golden State Warriors on the ropes, and then they knocked out the NBA's best team in overtime, 109-106 on Saturday night.
Sacramento's DeMarcus Cousins had 32 points -- six in overtime -- 12 rebounds and nine assists, and Matt Barnes had a double-double of 11 points and 14 rebounds as the Kings handed Golden State just its eighth loss of the season and snapped a 13-game losing streak to their Northern California counterparts.
Stephen Curry led the Warriors (43-8) with 35 points on eight 3-pointers and added nine assists. He had a pair of contested layup attempts that would've given Golden State the lead inside the final eight seconds of overtime, but neither would go down.
Darren Collison hit a pair of free throws with 2.5 seconds to go that pushed the lead to 109-106. The Warriors' last gasp was a open 3-pointer at the top of the key by Draymond Green that drew back iron.
Both teams had shots to win at the end of regulation. Cousins' fadeaway 18-footer went off front iron with 2.9 seconds left. The Warriors took timeout, advanced the ball to the front court and Klay Thompson had a catch-and-shoot 15-footer from the wing fall short at the buzzer.
A fairly non-descript back-and-forth game escalated quickly late in the third quarter. That's when an offensive foul called against the Warriors led to the ejection of coach Steve Kerr and sent both teams into overdrive. Five technical fouls -- including Kerr's double -- were called between that point and the final horn, and both teams were playing with visible emotion.
The Kings (20-31) were clearly more in need of the victory than the Warriors, having lost three straight and four of their last five.
Thompson finished with 26 points and Green, who briefly left the game with a right knee contusion at the end of the first half, had 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists. The team's fourth All-Star, Kevin Durant, battled a tough shooting night, going just 2-for-10 from the field and 0-for-6 from beyond the arc while scoring just 10 points.
Durant's struggles were indicative of the entire team as Golden State shot just 41.4 percent from the field.
Kerr was ejected at the 3:34 mark of the third period with the Warriors trailing 75-73. His discontent began when Kevin Looney was whistled for a personal foul for going over Ben McLemore to finish a put-back dunk in transition. The foul put the Kings in the bonus and sent McLemore to the line. Green was assessed a technical after the first attempt, and that sent Kerr red-faced to midcourt where he was physically being held back by assistant coach Mike Brown.
Curry scored 14 of his 35 in the first period to give the Warriors a 31-27 advantage after 12 minutes. The Kings had the better second period, thanks to a 12-point burst off the bench from big man Willie Cauley-Stein.
There were four lead changes in the period, but the half would finish in a 56-56 tie after Cousins converted a three-point play on a drive and dunk with 4.9 seconds left. It was just the third time all season that the Warriors found themselves tied at the half. The teams were still tied 82-82 at the end of three periods, the first time that's happened to the Warriors this season.
The Warriors' now-ended 13-game winning streak against Sacramento was tied for Golden State's longest winning streak against the Kings franchise.
NOTES: G Briante Weber, signed by the Warriors on Friday, was in uniform. He previously played for Sioux City of the Development League and was the league player of the month for January. Weber, who has seven games of NBA experience with the Miami Heat and the Memphis Grizzlies, is on a 10-day contract after replacing C Anderson Varejao, who was waived. ... G Aaron Afflalo (illness) returned after missing Friday night's loss but has just two points in 36 minutes. ... Kings coach Dave Joerger noted F Omri Casspi (foot) would likely not return until after the All-Star break. ... Warriors starting C Zaza Pachulia (right rotator cuff) was inactive for his third straight game. ... Kings reserve F Willie Cauley-Stein scored four points in 14 minutes during Friday's 105-103 loss to Phoenix. It snapped a streak of three straight games in double figures for him.