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http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/12583687p-13438227c.html
Kings' bricks build up to loss
They hurry too much and misfire on six of their last seven shots in falling to Golden State.
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Friday, March 18, 2005
OAKLAND - Finally, the bank was closed.
Comeback another time.
Nine days after his game-winning, bank-shot three-pointer beat the Memphis Grizzlies at the buzzer, Mike Bibby's mirror-image attempt with 2.9 seconds left against the Golden State Warriors came bouncing back his way like a bad check, the Kings losing 100-97 after Peja Stojakovic's desperation heave also missed.
In fact, none of the Kings' late transactions went through Thursday night, as they had four chances to tie the score or win a game in which they trailed by 21 points in the first half.
Kings forward Kenny Thomas watched his wide-open jumper bounce in and out, but Bibby corralled the ball and found Stojakovic outside the arc up top. Stojakovic rushed a three-point try with 14.9 seconds left before his final heave ended a night of unlikely drama. Ahead 93-92 with 4:33 left, the Kings missed six of their final seven shots.
In a case of J-Rich getting richer, Warriors guard Jason Richardson had capped his wondrous game with a 23-footer to put the Warriors up 99-97 with 27 seconds left. Richardson had his way with the Kings for the third time this season, scoring 40 points, shooting 16 of 28 from the field with 10 rebounds. He scored 26 and 32 points against the Kings earlier this season.
Kings coach Rick Adelman wasn't happy with a couple of the late looks - Stojakovic's hurried attempt and Bibby's bank shot.
"Maybe I could've dribbled away, but I do think I rushed it," Stojakovic said. "At that moment, I thought I had a good look."
Adelman disagreed.
"We still had 12 or 13 seconds left, and we've got to get back and get the shot we want," the coach said of Stojakovic's attempt. "And I wanted Mike to use the screen, not just go down the sideline."
But the top of Adelman's wish list had an item from much earlier, when the Kings might have played their worst half since the Chris Webber trade makeover.
Midway through the second quarter, the only thing high on the Kings' side of the court was the ball. Out of sheer angst, Cuttino Mobley slammed it off the court and into the rafters as Adelman called a timeout. Being down 21 points just 17 minutes into the game can have that effect on the psyche.
Richardson's twisting, tumbling, nearly backward layup fell in, giving him 19 points early and putting the Warriors up 48-27.
Despite Golden State's new help in guard Baron Davis, Richardson looked like the team's only option. His 17 first-quarter points tied his season-high for a Warriors player in one period, and he had 19 before any of his teammates had reached double digits. The Warriors hit 20 of their first 30 shots, while the Kings could do no right, hitting just 22 of their first 56.
But the Kings rallied, grabbing their first lead with one minute remaining in the third quarter, amidst a back-and-forth battle between Mobley and Richardson. Mobley's post-up fadeaway put the Kings up 76-75, only for Richardson to counter with a one-handed alley-oop to regain the edge. Mobley answered with a three-pointer, and Richardson hit one of his own seconds later to put the Warriors up 80-79. Richardson had 15 third-quarter points to Mobley's 13. "When you have a team like Sacramento down, you just have to keep on pounding," Richardson said.
Kings' bricks build up to loss
They hurry too much and misfire on six of their last seven shots in falling to Golden State.
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Friday, March 18, 2005
OAKLAND - Finally, the bank was closed.
Comeback another time.
Nine days after his game-winning, bank-shot three-pointer beat the Memphis Grizzlies at the buzzer, Mike Bibby's mirror-image attempt with 2.9 seconds left against the Golden State Warriors came bouncing back his way like a bad check, the Kings losing 100-97 after Peja Stojakovic's desperation heave also missed.
In fact, none of the Kings' late transactions went through Thursday night, as they had four chances to tie the score or win a game in which they trailed by 21 points in the first half.
Kings forward Kenny Thomas watched his wide-open jumper bounce in and out, but Bibby corralled the ball and found Stojakovic outside the arc up top. Stojakovic rushed a three-point try with 14.9 seconds left before his final heave ended a night of unlikely drama. Ahead 93-92 with 4:33 left, the Kings missed six of their final seven shots.
In a case of J-Rich getting richer, Warriors guard Jason Richardson had capped his wondrous game with a 23-footer to put the Warriors up 99-97 with 27 seconds left. Richardson had his way with the Kings for the third time this season, scoring 40 points, shooting 16 of 28 from the field with 10 rebounds. He scored 26 and 32 points against the Kings earlier this season.
Kings coach Rick Adelman wasn't happy with a couple of the late looks - Stojakovic's hurried attempt and Bibby's bank shot.
"Maybe I could've dribbled away, but I do think I rushed it," Stojakovic said. "At that moment, I thought I had a good look."
Adelman disagreed.
"We still had 12 or 13 seconds left, and we've got to get back and get the shot we want," the coach said of Stojakovic's attempt. "And I wanted Mike to use the screen, not just go down the sideline."
But the top of Adelman's wish list had an item from much earlier, when the Kings might have played their worst half since the Chris Webber trade makeover.
Midway through the second quarter, the only thing high on the Kings' side of the court was the ball. Out of sheer angst, Cuttino Mobley slammed it off the court and into the rafters as Adelman called a timeout. Being down 21 points just 17 minutes into the game can have that effect on the psyche.
Richardson's twisting, tumbling, nearly backward layup fell in, giving him 19 points early and putting the Warriors up 48-27.
Despite Golden State's new help in guard Baron Davis, Richardson looked like the team's only option. His 17 first-quarter points tied his season-high for a Warriors player in one period, and he had 19 before any of his teammates had reached double digits. The Warriors hit 20 of their first 30 shots, while the Kings could do no right, hitting just 22 of their first 56.
But the Kings rallied, grabbing their first lead with one minute remaining in the third quarter, amidst a back-and-forth battle between Mobley and Richardson. Mobley's post-up fadeaway put the Kings up 76-75, only for Richardson to counter with a one-handed alley-oop to regain the edge. Mobley answered with a three-pointer, and Richardson hit one of his own seconds later to put the Warriors up 80-79. Richardson had 15 third-quarter points to Mobley's 13. "When you have a team like Sacramento down, you just have to keep on pounding," Richardson said.
