Kings Can’t Hold Off Heat In Double Overtime
Feb. 21, 2012; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (left) is pressured by Sacramento Kings point guard Tyreke Evans (center) and center Chuck Hayes (42) during the second half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
The Sacramento Kings gave the Heat all they could handle, as they lost in double overtime 141-129. The Kings easily played their best game of the season and showed a glimspe of how good of a team they could be. In the end, Lebron James and Dwane Wade weresimply too much for the Kings to handle. Ray Allen came off the bench and scored 21 points as he made things even more difficult.
The Kings gave a valiant effort as Marcus Thornton had a season high 38 points in 40 minutes off the bench. Thornton seemed to ice water in his viens going went toe to toe with King James, and was a major reason the Kings pushed the Heat to double overtime. Demearcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans each scored 24 points with Cousins grabbing 15 rebounds for a double double. Evans also had five steals. John Salmons had a huge block on Lebron James at the end of the second overtime and kept his team in the game. Salmons scored 15 points and had 7 assists. Isaiah Thomas played one of his best all around games of the seaosn with 14 points and 9 assists.
The Miami Heat were only able to pull away from the Kings in the second overtime, and it took major games from Lebron James, Dwane Wade and Ray Allen to keep them in the game. The Kings seemed to play with a renewed sense of pride, and showed how good they are capable of being.
Sacramento had 33 assists as they shared the ball as well as they have all season. The Kings gave themselves several chances to win the game, but were unable to close out the defending champion Miami Heat.
The Kings will travel to Orlando tonight and prepare for the second game of a back to back tomorrow night. The Kings have to be proud of themselves, even after a defeat as they took the Heat to the brink. If the Kings could find a way to bring this level of energy and play like they did tonight, they could be a very competitive basketball team who could beat anyone in this League. With this potentially being the last season in Sacramento for the Kings, they have to play every game like its their last. They may not have a chance at making the playoffs, but they should be playing for their fans and for pride.