http://www.sacbee.com/100/story/107521.html
Taking it on the chin
Kings lose fourth in succession
By Sam Amick - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 1:43 am PST Saturday, January 13, 2007
PORTLAND, Ore. -- They were all going through the motions except John Salmons, who sat at his locker with his jersey still on when Shareef Abdur-Rahim noticed.
"John, what are you doing?" he said. "Let's go. Let's get out of here."
Mike Bibby already was dressed and gone, but he had given his best assessment of the Kings' fourth consecutive loss while munching on chicken strips and fries. Kevin Martin admitted his own loss for words, deciding to resort to the things he could control when everything else seemed uncontrollable.
"Lace up our shoes the same, put our jerseys on the same, go out and play together," Martin said. "Try to score more than the other team. That's the state of mind we have right now."
Without answers and without much fight, the Kings fell 95-87 to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night in the Rose Garden. And after a loss to Cleveland on Tuesday that led to emotion and harsh self-evaluation, the scene following this defeat was quite different.
The latest revelation was that this was no aberration. In games in which the Kings have trailed by at least eight points, they fell to 2-18. Friday, they led 24-16 after the first quarter before trailing by as many as 13 points.
Translation: Knock the Kings down, and they likely won't get up.
"Teams go on a run, and we drop our heads and start feeling sorry for ourselves," said Corliss Williamson, who returned from a one-game absence caused by back spasms to score 14 points. "I don't want to say we've lost the will to win, but we've forgotten how to ... . You can't let teams take your heart."
There seemingly was a cumulative effect of the three previous losses, overtime defeats to the Los Angeles Lakers and Portland and a blown chance against the Cavaliers in which the Kings led by 17 in the third quarter. But after eyeing the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference in recent weeks, the Kings merely came closer to joining the ranks of the worst in the West. The Blazers have only three victories in their last 12 games, and two of those triumphs have come against the Kings.
Though the Kings recently had been guilty of Jekyll-and-Hyde halves, they didn't wait that long Friday. They were proficient in the first quarter, with Mike Bibby scoring nine of his 13 points and the Kings forcing seven turnovers. But their eight-point advantage evaporated quickly with a new lineup, one that didn't include Ron Artest for the second quarter. The Kings had nine of their 21 turnovers in the quarter, were beaten badly on the boards and trailed 42-40 at halftime.
But the inconsistencies didn't stop there. Artest, who played just seven minutes and took no shots in the first half, scored all 16 of his points in the second half. Bibby, meanwhile, disappeared from the offense, taking just two shots after halftime, and Martin made only slightly more of an appearance. The guard took five shots and had just seven of his team-high 17 points in the second half.
The Blazers pulled away with a 12-2 run midway through the fourth quarter and continued to look like a playoff team whenever they face the Kings. In the last six games in which they haven't faced the Kings, Portland -- which is ranked 28th in scoring -- had mustered 82.6 points per game. The Blazers averaged 102.5 against the Kings in the last two meetings.
Forward Zach Randolph had 23 points and 12 rebounds, and reserve guard Juan Dixon scored 21 points and hit 3 of 5 three-pointers for Portland.
"We jumped on them early and couldn't hold the lead," Bibby said. "We didn't have intensity, energy, including myself."
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at samick@sacbee.com.
Taking it on the chin
Kings lose fourth in succession
By Sam Amick - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 1:43 am PST Saturday, January 13, 2007
PORTLAND, Ore. -- They were all going through the motions except John Salmons, who sat at his locker with his jersey still on when Shareef Abdur-Rahim noticed.
"John, what are you doing?" he said. "Let's go. Let's get out of here."
Mike Bibby already was dressed and gone, but he had given his best assessment of the Kings' fourth consecutive loss while munching on chicken strips and fries. Kevin Martin admitted his own loss for words, deciding to resort to the things he could control when everything else seemed uncontrollable.
"Lace up our shoes the same, put our jerseys on the same, go out and play together," Martin said. "Try to score more than the other team. That's the state of mind we have right now."
Without answers and without much fight, the Kings fell 95-87 to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night in the Rose Garden. And after a loss to Cleveland on Tuesday that led to emotion and harsh self-evaluation, the scene following this defeat was quite different.
The latest revelation was that this was no aberration. In games in which the Kings have trailed by at least eight points, they fell to 2-18. Friday, they led 24-16 after the first quarter before trailing by as many as 13 points.
Translation: Knock the Kings down, and they likely won't get up.
"Teams go on a run, and we drop our heads and start feeling sorry for ourselves," said Corliss Williamson, who returned from a one-game absence caused by back spasms to score 14 points. "I don't want to say we've lost the will to win, but we've forgotten how to ... . You can't let teams take your heart."
There seemingly was a cumulative effect of the three previous losses, overtime defeats to the Los Angeles Lakers and Portland and a blown chance against the Cavaliers in which the Kings led by 17 in the third quarter. But after eyeing the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference in recent weeks, the Kings merely came closer to joining the ranks of the worst in the West. The Blazers have only three victories in their last 12 games, and two of those triumphs have come against the Kings.
Though the Kings recently had been guilty of Jekyll-and-Hyde halves, they didn't wait that long Friday. They were proficient in the first quarter, with Mike Bibby scoring nine of his 13 points and the Kings forcing seven turnovers. But their eight-point advantage evaporated quickly with a new lineup, one that didn't include Ron Artest for the second quarter. The Kings had nine of their 21 turnovers in the quarter, were beaten badly on the boards and trailed 42-40 at halftime.
But the inconsistencies didn't stop there. Artest, who played just seven minutes and took no shots in the first half, scored all 16 of his points in the second half. Bibby, meanwhile, disappeared from the offense, taking just two shots after halftime, and Martin made only slightly more of an appearance. The guard took five shots and had just seven of his team-high 17 points in the second half.
The Blazers pulled away with a 12-2 run midway through the fourth quarter and continued to look like a playoff team whenever they face the Kings. In the last six games in which they haven't faced the Kings, Portland -- which is ranked 28th in scoring -- had mustered 82.6 points per game. The Blazers averaged 102.5 against the Kings in the last two meetings.
Forward Zach Randolph had 23 points and 12 rebounds, and reserve guard Juan Dixon scored 21 points and hit 3 of 5 three-pointers for Portland.
"We jumped on them early and couldn't hold the lead," Bibby said. "We didn't have intensity, energy, including myself."
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at samick@sacbee.com.
