Following a long eight-month hiatus, the Sacramento Kings finally returned to Power Balance Pavilion and provided a sellout crowd with a 100-91 win over the rival Los Angeles Lakers. After almost seeing their team move to Anaheim last season followed by a labor disagreement that caused a delay to the start of the season, Kings fans filled the arena for the Kings “blackout” game and were rewarded with a hard-fought victory by their new-look Kings. Fans were loud and into the game before the ball was even tipped off. With the lights off, fans were instructed to activate the purple light sticks that they were given at the door, and continued cheering through much of a tribute video that fol

Twelve thousand plus in attendance for a preseason game told you that Kings head honcho Paul Westphal was right. “It’s nice to have basketball back in this building, isn’t it?,” Westphal started his post game press conference. It sure was! A good crowd for the only home preseason game this season saw the Sacramento Kings tighten up the defense in the final minutes of the game and hold on to beat the Golden State Warriors 95-91 at Power Balance Pavilion on Tuesday evening. Leading the way for the Kings was Marcus Thornton who had 21 points, seven boards and four assists and J.J. Hickson who scored 19 points and had nine rebounds. Tyreke Evans scored the first basket of the new season o

With the season fast approaching, the Sacramento Kings held their annual Media Day on Thursday, December 15 at Power Balance Pavilion. Every player had various duties on this busy day - multiple media obligations, shooting stand ups and bits for use in-game and even an open scrimmage, where fans across the valley will get their first chance at seeing this version of the new-look Kings. With the addition of J.J. Hickson (via trade from Cleveland for Omri Casspi), the signing of free agent Chuck Hayes away from Houston and acquiring John Salmons via draft day trade involving Beno Udrih plus the drafting of three rookies in Jimmer Fredette, Isaiah Thomas and Tyler Honeycutt added to the thr

The long-awaited, lockout-shortened Kings’ season is finally underway as training camp has opened in Natomas at Sacramento’s training facility in the Power Balance Pavilion parking lot. Here are some observations from the second and third day of the two-week training camp. State of the Kings Address Each training camp, Geoff Petrie, the Kings’ President of Basketball Operations, addresses the media to discuss the offseason and his early training camp observations. This year was a lot different for Petrie as he and the staff are having to cram over a months worth of moves, discussions and preparation for the upcoming season in a two-week period. Here are Petrie’s comments regarding vari

With no end in sight to the NBA lockout, Sacramento Kings forward Donte Greene gave Kings and NBA fans something to cheer about on Sunday evening at the Pavilion at UC Davis as he hosted the Goon Squad Classic. Greene came up with the name because him and fellow teammates Jason Thompson and Pooh Jeter are known as the “Goon Squad,” as they jump up and down before Kings games to help pump up the crowd. Since there has not been a labor agreement between the players and the owners of the NBA, Greene decided to host the Goon Squad Classic, a charity game that benefited numerous charities both locally and nationally. It was the first time that the Sacramento region had seen professional bask

The Sacramento Kings fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder by a final score of 120-112 on Monday night at Power Balance Pavilion. With the Maloofs' decision on a possible move to Anaheim looming, the Kings came out and played hard for the 15,683 fans that came to show support for their team. Throughout the game, fans could be heard ringing their cowbells while chanting, “SA-CRA-MEN-TO!” and “No L.A., here we stay!” Kings head coach Paul Westphal had positive things to say. “I thought that was a great atmosphere and there was a lot of great NBA basketball out there.” The Kings jumped off to an 8-2 lead in the first couple of minutes of the game, but the Oklahoma City Thunder would come back

DeMarcus Cousins sat in front of his locker space exhausted, the effects of a long first season etched in his face and his left shoulder donned in black tape as if held on by Super Glue. At least he wasn’t bleeding this time. After putting up 17 points, collecting nine rebounds, dealing out six assists and setting a personal high with five steals, it’s understandable why - nearing the end of his rookie campaign - Cousins could barely find the energy to speak to reporters after the game. “Even though we are not having a great season and everyone knows we are not going to the playoffs, the fan support is unbelievable,” said a soft-spoken Cousins. “They stick with us through thick and thin

In a rematch of a game in Denver just two days prior, the Kings were hoping that their newfound cohesiveness would be on full display in trying to get one back from the visiting team. No such luck as the Denver Nuggets pulled away in the second half and never looked back in their defeat of the Kings 99-90 in Sacramento on Friday evening. Make no mistake about it. This was a physical contest. The Nuggets are known for playing that rough, in-your-face, stripping the ball type of irritating defense that tends to get on the opposing players nerves. It was just after halfway through the first quarter when the Denver center Nene (12 points, 12 boards) pushed Tyreke Evan hard to the ground.  Ev

In a slack game of basketball at Power Balance Pavilion, the Sacramento Kings lost to the Philadelphia 76ers Friday night, falling behind from the very to beginning to lose 80-102. Within minutes of the opening toss-up it was obvious the Kings couldn't hit their stride as they moved the ball around with sloppy passes. It didn't take long for head coach Pete Westphal to call a timeout and break the Sixers’ small lead of 12-9. From that moment on, the Sixers were ahead the entire game. Though the Kings weren't that far behind at the end of the first quarter, the Sixers pulled even farther ahead fairly swiftly and kept it that way. The Kings had their moments in the second quarter. At time

When looking at the Cavaliers roster, it’s hard to find a bunch of names that roll off the tongue as if you’ve heard of them many times before. On the other hand, just to make it to an NBA roster means you have special skills and should never be taken lightly. In this case, I don’t think a team that has the second worst record in the Association - the Kings - would or could afford to take any team for granted. They didn’t, but still came up a little short. In a battle of teams with the two worst records in the NBA, the Cleveland Cavaliers outlasted the Sacramento Kings, 97-93, in a game the Kings should have won. From the outset, the Kings cranked up the defensive pressure by constantly

Your Sacramento Kings played host to the Golden State Warriors on Monday night, possibly for the final time. In front of a raucous crowd of 14,243, the home team played inspired ball for three quarters and held off a furious fourth-quarter comeback by the Warriors' B team to win 129-119. The Kings were led by Samuel Dalembert (27 points, 16 rebounds) and newcomer Marcus Thornton (42 points, 4 steals), who both went for career highs in points against the porous (sievelike? nonexistent?) Warriors D. The Warriors drew first blood on a Dorrell Wright corner three. The Kings answered with a spectacular 19-0 run. In my mind, I heard "Sweet Georgia Brown" playing as the Kings made their NorCal

It was a close game for the Sacramento Kings Thursday  Wednesday night, but they came up short in the end, losing to the Orlando Magic, 102-106 at the Power Balance Pavilion. The Kings shot 64 percent and led 33-29 at the end of the first quarter. Marcus Thornton led the Kings with 11 points and 4 rebounds, while Dwight Howard led the Magic with 10 points and 5 rebounds. Early in the second quarter, DeMarcus Cousins made several jump shots and two free throws. With seven tenths of a second left in the quarter, Jason Richardson made a three-point shot, bringing the Magic up to 56, with the Kings still leading at 59. In the third quarter, the Kings made eight free throws. The Magic and t

The Kings weren’t able to ground the Rockets Monday as Houston routed Sacramento 123-101 at the Power Balance Pavilion. Sacramento got off to a decent start to the game, having a slight 30-29 lead to end the first quarter. The Kings then started to lose their lead during the second quarter, but the third was Sacramento’s worst, as they gave up 30 points and only answered with 16. Power Balance Pavilion was not close to being filled, but the fans who were there showed as much support as they could for their Sacramento Kings despite the team’s struggles. Forward DeMarcus Cousins scored 20 points and went 10 for 20 in field goals, tying the game-high with Houston forward Chase Budinger, wh

The Sacramento Kings fell to the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night by a final score of 107-102 in what is now called Power Balance Pavilion. The Kings looked to win their second game in a row and also win the first game under the arena's new name. On Tuesday, the arena formally changed its name to Power Balance Pavilion after being ARCO Arena since its inaugural game on Nov. 8, 1988. The Kings started where they finished Monday night, playing solid basketball and shooting 55 percent from the field, but they found themselves down to the Trail Blazers 30-29 after the first quarter. Newly acquired King Marcus Thornton again came into the game and provided a spark for the Kings off

It’s an enjoyable new tradition: on every February 28 during this decade (yes...both of them), the Sacramento Kings beat the Los Angeles Clippers. In 2010, it was by 97-92, while this time around, the final score was 105-99. The event could well be called “Double Throwback Night,” or maybe “The Throwest Back Night Ever.” On one hand, it was Throwback Jersey Night, as the Kings wore uniforms honoring their previous incarnation as the Royals (Rochester Royals, and then Cincinnati Kansas City Royals). More important to the outcome of the game, if not the fate of the franchise itself, it also became Throwback Fan Night. Arco Arena was filled to the brim, just like in the old days, when lovin

The Sacramento Kings lost another heartbreaker Saturday night, falling to the Oklahoma City Thunder 99-97 in dramatic fashion. After trailing by as many as 13 points in the fourth quarter, and by 10 with less than three minutes to play, they charged back in the final minutes, nearly completing the dramatic comeback. With 5.8 seconds left, Samuel Dalembert rebounded a Kevin Durant-missed free throw, and the Kings called a timeout, trailing by two with a chance to send it to overtime or win it with a three-pointer. Off the inbounds, Tyreke Evans was a bit short on his three-point attempt, and Omri Casspi couldn't get his follow tip to fall. It was their fifth straight loss, and they ende

The Sacramento Kings hosted the streaking Dallas Mavericks, who were riding a 10-game winning streak going into Wednesday night's game. The Kings fought valiantly to erase an 11-point deficit, but Jason Terry and José Barea helped spark the Mavs to an 11th straight victory, beating the Kings 102-100. Terry stepped up off the bench in the wake of Dirk Nowitzki’s poor shooting night by scoring a game-high 20 points. Barea, who averages nine points per game from the bench, scored 15 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter to help hold off the Kings. “He’s one of the quickest players in the league,” Kings coach Paul Westphal said of Barea. “He can shoot. They set a lot of screens for him. He

After starting out 2-0 during this tough stretch of games, the Kings are working their way through the home part of the journey hoping to rack up some good wins against good teams before going on the road again. The Utah Jazz were in town with their 3-9 record in their last 12 games and appeared to be ripe for the picking. Unfortunately, it was the Jazz that did the harvesting, as they held on to upend the Kings 107-104 on the strength of Deron Williams’ court magic and Al Jefferson’s play around the rim. Utah came out firing with Jefferson (23 points, 3 steals), the offensive powerhouse acquired in the offseason, was having his way with DeMarcus Cousins on the block. Jefferson’s great f

Going into the game, Sacramento was missing a few big men: Jason Thompson (sprained ankle) and Hassan Whiteside (knee strain), and then Darnell Jackson right before halftime in a freak incident. You would think the Kings would have had no chance in matching up with the daunting Boston Celtics, the team with the best record in the NBA. You would be wrong, as for most of the game the Kings were in it and even pushed back almost every time the Celts pushed them. If it wasn’t for Ray Allen’s fiery halftime locker room speech, the Kings may have prevailed. In the end, in a tough, physical game, The C’s from Beantown got by the hometown Kings, 95-90. It was the first time this tough season th

Kings rookie DeMarcus Cousins engineered another solid game Saturday night in Arco Arena, leading the Sacramento Kings to a 102-96 victory over the red-hot New Orleans Hornets. Cousins had 25 points, 12 rebounds and career-high seven assists as the Kings snapped the Hornets' 10-game win streak. The win gave the Kings their first consecutive game win streak since winning the home opener on Nov. 1. The Kings got off to a quick start, shooting 55% from the field in the first quarter to take a 24-22 lead. Cousins and Kings guard Tyreke Evans led the Kings with 10 and nine points, respectively. “Coach said 'we just came from beating the world champs', so we were trying to come out and jump o