CK Press Box Report: Magic 105, Kings 96

By James Ham and Rui Thomas

DeMarcus Cousins may be the one who’s sick, but the Sacramento Kings as a whole lacked energy. With starting centers Cousins (virus) and Nikola Vucevic (back) out, the Orlando Magic came out ahead in the battle of thin frontcourts, 105-96.

“From the jump ball. From the jump ball, it went wrong,” Michael Malone murmured after the loss. “We just didn’t defend anybody. You can’t allow a team, who’s coming in here with four games in five nights, to start the game as comfortable as they did.”

Between the first and fourth quarters, the Kings struggled badly on both sides of the ball. For the game Sacramento did limit their turnovers to 11, but shot 40.4 percent from the floor entering the fourth quarter and started the game 0-for-9 from behind the arc until Darren Collison’s four-point play with 10:10 in the final period. The bench unit was at one point 1-for-20 on field goals (Ramon Sessions with the lone basket) before Derrick Williams provided a spark scoring 14 points on 6-of-8 field goals, all in the fourth.

The Magic shot 51.6 percent from the floor entering the last quarter before the Kings clamped down to tie the game at 90 with 3:59 to go. Then the road team went on a 9-0 run to put the game out of reach. Sacramento gave Orlando countless looks on the perimeter which the Magic took advantage of, making 9-of-26 from deep. Tobias Harris scored 27 points (4-of-5 behind the arc), Kyle O’Quinn added 13 points on 5-of-5 shooting, and Victor Oladipo recorded 16 points.

“These guys can’t guard anybody, and the guys that came in couldn’t guard anybody,” Malone stated. “So I don’t what the deal is, but all I know is when we defend like that, or don’t defend at all, we get beat.”

Aside from Williams, the Kings starters were the only reason the home team could compete. Jason Thompson enjoyed his best offensive showing of the season with 18 points on 9-of-12 field goals, adding nine rebounds. Darren Collison scored 22 points but dished only four assists, while Rudy Gay notched 16 points, five rebounds and six assists.

The Kings fall to 10-10 and may be without Cousins for longer than expected, which Malone hinted. Sacramento hosts the Utah Jazz on Monday and then travels to play the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday.

Notes and Analysis

• Jason Thompson finally had his breakout game for Sacramento tonight, finishing with a season-high 18 points on 9-of-12 shooting.  He added nine rebounds and four assists in 31 minutes.  The veteran has held his own on the defensive all season, but coming into this game, he had struggled to find a rhythm on the offensive side of the ball.

• Darren Collison had a solid game, scoring 22 points, including a huge four-point play during the Kings’ fourth quarter comeback. The veteran point guard held Victor Oladipo in check for most of the night and even played a little bit of off-guard.

• Without DeMarcus Cousins in the lineup, the Kings offense ran through Gay on plenty of possessions tonight.  Gay finished with 16 points, six assists and five rebounds, but he struggled with Tobias Harris all night.  Harris scored a game-high 27 points on 10-for-17 shooting.

• We had a Ramon Sessions sighting.  The 28-year-old guard has struggled this season, but not tonight.  Sessions played alongside Collison in the backcourt in the fourth, and it made for a good pairing.  Sessions scored 10 points and handed out seven assists in 24 minutes.  He shot just 3-of-11 from the field, but he was aggressive and made a difference.

• Derrick Williams was also aggressive tonight.  For the second time in three games, the 23-year-old forward made a huge impact in a game.  Williams attacked the rim and finished with 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting in just 17 minutes.

• After playing a team-high 47 minutes against the Pacers last night, Ben McLemore struggled tonight against Orlando.  McLemore scored just two points in 24 minutes of action.   

• Stat of the Night:  Primary bench players Carl Landry, Omri Casspi, Ramon Sessions, Nik Stauskas and Reggie Evans combined to shoot 4-of-23 field goals for 19 points.

Quote of the Game

Jason Thompson on playing down to the opponent

“We can’t play to the level of competition. Sometimes we’re at our best when we play against the best teams with the best records. I think we should have that type of fire regardless of who we’re playing against. We need to have that mindset, and make sure we have a defensive mindset and an offensive rhythm.”