1/5/12 Sacramento, Calif. -- Keith Smart, the new Sacramento Kings Coach, won his first game as they came back from a 21-point half-time deficit to beat the Milwaukee Bucks 103-100. The Kings got 25 points in the second half from guard Marcus Thornton connecting on 9-of-15 shots. He was 1-of-8 in the first half.
“I told him to keep his head up,” back-court mate Tyreke Evans said. “He seemed when he wasn’t scoring his head was down, like the game was over. It’s a long game... It’s about runs. We found away. That’s what you gotta do sometimes. You gotta find a way.”
The Kings found a way to fire Coach Paul Westphal today on the back of the DeMarcus Cousins drama and losing 5 of their first seven games. Cousins who had been asking for a trade, proved his value tonight finishing with 19 points and 15 rebounds before fouling out with 4:36 remaining, down 97-90.
Cousins fouled Bay Area native Drew Gooden who landed one of two free throws to give the bucks a 98-90 lead. The Kings went on a 13-2 run to close out the game and take the lead. Jennings scored on a driving layup with :58 seconds left. That was the last bucket for the Bucks as the Kings finished the game out with a jumper from John Salmons and four free throws from Evans who finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists.
“We did a good job getting a stop at a time,” 6-5 Tyreke Evans stated. “We buckled down and got stops. We took over to win the game.”
Brandon Jennings paced the Bucks with game-highs scoring 31 points and adding 7 assists. Jennings kept the Kings on their heels penetrating and hitting 6-of 10 from three. He shot 12-of-23 for the game. Center Drew Gooden finished with 18 points and 9 rebounds.
Sacramento chipped away at the lead going small deploying three and four guards on the floor. This is similar to “Nelly-ball”. That makes sense since Smart is a disciple of Coach Don Nelson. This gave Sacramento a chance to push the ball.
Keith Smart found a way to enter a two year contract as King’s head coach after being fired last spring by the Golden State Warriors. Now Smart is just an hour-and-a-half north from Oakland and a little breathing room to develop his players.
Coach Keith Smart talks about Thornton's second half
Kings Tyreke Evans talks about comeback over the Bucks
Marcus Thornton finishes with 27 points, 25 in the second half
