Kings Stay In Firm Control of Suns, Win Second Straight

Jan 23, 2013; Sacramento, CA, USA; Phoenix Suns shooting guard P.J. Tucker (17) drives in between Sacramento Kings point guard Tyreke Evans (13) and power forward James Johnson (52) during the second quarter at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

A second straight road win? Well that’s unusual for the Kings, who have had 8 total road wins this season. Nevertheless, the Kings’ offense was working on all levels, and they were able to knock off the Phoenix Suns, 117-103. It was a great game for each Kings, but while there were plenty of positives, there were still some negatives. The Suns almost cam back.

DeMarcus Cousins finished another monster night with 34 points and 14 rebounds, and he was in good company with Isaiah Thomas, who finished with 23 points and 8 assists. Tyreke Evans had just 12 on 5/9 shooting.

The Kings rode some of that magic they used to beat the Warriors in the early going of this game. In the first quarter, they lead 18-14, then went on a run, leaving the Phoenix suns in the dust. At the end of the quarter, the Kings were shooting torridly, and leading 38-32. The Suns shot pretty well too, but the Kings’ offense was working tonight. They had an equally good second quarter.

In the second, the Kings’ defense really tightened up and they held the Suns to just 18 points, while scoring 26 of their own. They were having trouble with Michael Beasley and PJ Tucker, but were still able to maintain a firm grip on their lead that they cherished. At the half, the Kings were leading the Suns 64-50. They weren’t playing great defense, but again, their offense was good enough to push them far ahead.

In the third quarter, the Suns went on some pretty big runs to cut the deficit, but they were never really able to get the lead down to single digits. Louis Scola finished with 25 points, but couldn’t do enough in the third. The Kings were really making a push, but were still outscored by 4 points in the quarter. Entering the final period of play, the Kings lead by just 10.

In the fourth quarter, the Kings really gave their fans a scare, by allowing the lead to get down to 5 points, but the Suns would get no closer. A late offensive explosion from the Kings pushed them into an easy victory. They outscored the suns 29-25 in the 4th and that was it.