DeMarcus Cousins had 34 points and 17 rebounds, Rudy Gay added 25 points, and the Sacramento Kings handed the poor shooting Los Angeles Clippers their first loss, 98-92 on Sunday.
The Kings (2-1) rallied from a 10-point deficit in the third quarter and outscored the Clippers 28-18 in the fourth. They took the lead for good on a layup by Gay with just under six minutes to play.
Blake Griffin and Spencer Hawes both scored 17 points to lead five Clippers in double figures. Chris Paul had 16 points and 11 assists, J.J. Redick had 12 points, and Jordan Farmar 10.
The Clippers (2-1) struggled offensively for the third straight game, shooting 33 of 88. They were 9 of 31 from 3-point range, with Matt Barnes, Paul and Redick combining to miss a slew in the fourth.
Even new Clippers owner Steve Ballmer couldn't exhort his team to victory, his fists clenched, his face red and his lips forming the words, "Let's go!" from his baseline seat.
Sacramento's Darren Collison scored 14 points in his first game against his former team.
The Clippers led by two early in the fourth, when their second unit got things going. But the starters returned and couldn't make a difference.
Cousins scored the Kings' first eight points of the game, and he had 11 points in the third when they cut a 10-point deficit to four heading into the fourth.
Sacramento's Ben McLemore received a flagrant-1 for pulling Griffin down from behind midway through the first. Griffin was on a breakaway when McLemore yanked on his jersey, sending Griffin to the court, where he landed at McLemore's feet near the basket support. Cousins was trailing on the play, and the referees quickly moved in to separate the players.
TIP-INS
Griffin demands ball and delivers as Clippers edge Lakers
Kings: Collison spent last season with the Clippers as Paul's backup before leaving for a starting role and more money in Sacramento. He said it wasn't too tough facing his old team, adding, "If I had been with them longer I probably would feel a little different." Clippers coach Doc Rivers said he knew by mid-season that Collison wouldn't be back and there was nothing the team could have done to keep him. C Ryan Hollins followed Collison north, and the team also has former Clipper Reggie Evans.
Clippers: G Jamal Crawford sat out with sore left ribs and said it was hard to breathe. He got hit by the Lakers' Robert Sacre in the second half of Friday's game. ... F Glen Davis missed his third straight game with a strained right groin.
UP NEXT
Kings: At Denver on Monday.
Clippers: Host Utah on Monday in their fourth game in five nights.
