{"id":349196,"date":"2011-03-30T06:07:32","date_gmt":"2011-03-30T06:07:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/03\/30\/kings-outlast-suns-to-extend-run-to-4-ap\/"},"modified":"2011-03-30T06:07:32","modified_gmt":"2011-03-30T06:07:32","slug":"kings-outlast-suns-to-extend-run-to-4-ap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/03\/30\/kings-outlast-suns-to-extend-run-to-4-ap\/","title":{"rendered":"Kings outlast Suns to extend run to 4 (AP)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)\u2014On a night when the biggest news for the franchise
\nwas happening off the court, the youthful Sacramento Kings<\/a> and their loyal fans
\nwere focused only on the game.<\/p>\n

Inspired by a fan base that has stuck by them in a trying season, Marcus
\nThornton<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> scored 24 points and tied a career high with 11 rebounds for the Kings,
\nwho won their season-high fourth straight game by defeating the Phoenix Suns<\/a>
\n116-113 on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n

Despite the strong possibility of the team moving to Anaheim next season,
\nthe Kings are enjoying their best stretch of the season, winning five of six
\ngames.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was overwhelming. (The fans) have deep roots and deep love for this
\nteam,\u201d Kings coach Paul Westphal said. \u201cWhatever happens, nobody knows. We\u2019re
\nhonored that they celebrated basketball and the Kings. We felt that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Early Tuesday night, the Anaheim City Council voted 5-0 to approve a $75
\nmillion financial package to lure the Kings from Sacramento. The council also
\nvoted 5-0 to pay for the Kings\u2019 relocation.<\/p>\n

Orange County billionaire Henry Samueli, who manages the Honda Center where
\nthe Kings would play, will finance the deal himself, while the city is issuing
\nthe bond package. Officials at the Honda Center announced Tuesday that they will
\nbe creating a waiting list for fans who have inquired about NBA tickets for next
\nseason.<\/p>\n

At a press conference, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson, a former NBA star in
\nPhoenix, said he\u2019s resigned to the Kings moving to Anaheim but expects the
\nMaloof ownership group to pay its $77 million loan to the City of Sacramento.<\/p>\n

Despite the off-court news, attendance was 13,744 and fans cheered the Kings
\nlike it was just another regular-season game, ignoring the likelihood that the
\nteam won\u2019t return next season.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter announcing that we might be moving, the real fans have come back and
\nsupported us,\u201d Donte Greene<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> said. \u201cThey still love us. We\u2019re the only thing
\nhere besides the (Sacramento) River Cats (Triple-A baseball team). They want to
\nkeep this team here. They keep coming to the games and showing that they want
\nthe team to stay here.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the Kings celebrated only their 10th home win this season, the Suns
\nwere lamenting yet another loss, their third straight and eighth in 11 games.
\nPhoenix has watched any hopes of the playoffs practically disappear over this
\nstretch. The Suns (36-37) are 10th in the conference and trail the eighth-place
\nMemphis Grizzlies<\/a> by 4 1\/2 games with nine games remaining in the regular season.<\/p>\n

If the Suns miss the playoffs, it will only be the third time since the
\n1988-89 season. The last time they failed to make the playoffs was the 2008-09
\nseason.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to play your way into the playoffs,\u201d Suns coach Alvin Gentry
\nsaid. \u201cRight now, the way we\u2019re playing we don\u2019t deserve to be in the playoffs.
\nAll the teams we are chasing are really good. And we are not. We are still alive
\nin the playoff race, but we are basically on life support.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beno Udrih<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> had 19 points for the Kings, who were coming off a 4-1 road trip.<\/p>\n

Greene scored 18 points and DeMarcus Cousins<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> had 17 points and a season-best
\neight assists, while Jason Thompson<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> had 14 points and 10 rebounds. Tyreke Evans<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span>
\nadded 11 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy foot feels better and I\u2019m moving at a good speed,\u201d said Evans, who had
\nseven points, three rebounds and two assists in the fourth quarter when the
\nKings outscored the Suns 31-20.<\/p>\n

Both Jared Dudley<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> and Channing Frye<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> scored 21 points for the Suns, who lost
\nto the Kings for the third straight time. Marcin Gortat<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> had 17 points and 11
\nrebounds, and Steve Nash<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> added 13 points and 14 assists.<\/p>\n

Ahead by 10 early in the fourth quarter, a 14-4 run by the Kings tied it.
\nThe remainder of the quarter was a back-and-forth game, until Sacramento scored
\nseven straight points to turn a one-point deficit into a 116-110 lead.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have been playing well and they have been a tough matchup for us,\u201d
\nNash said. \u201cWe got off to a good start, but couldn\u2019t close out the game. That\u2019s
\npretty much how it\u2019s been going, not only against them, but recently and
\nthroughout the season.\u201d<\/p>\n

After Dudley put the Suns ahead 111-110 on a jumper, the Kings retook the
\nlead on Thornton\u2019s 3-point for a two-point lead with just under a minute to
\nplay. Evans added two free throws to put Sacramento ahead 114-110 with 18.7
\nseconds left.<\/p>\n

Frye missed a 3-pointer that could have pulled the Suns within a point. The
\nKings secured the rebound and the victory when Thornton made two free throws for
\na 116-110 advantage.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we get healthy and are able to sort things out, I think we\u2019re showing
\nthat there is a lot of reason for optimism,\u201d Westphal said. \u201cI think this team
\nis excited about what the chances of success are going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Notes: Gary Bender, who has called Suns TV games for nearly two decades,
\nannounced his retirement Monday. \u2026 Hill scored 13 points and Gortat had 12 in
\nthe opening half when the Suns led 61-59. Udrih had 15 points for the Kings. \u2026
\nLast year\u2019s rookie of the year, Evans played in his third straight game after
\nmissing the previous 19 with plantar fasciitis in his left foot.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Continue reading here:
\nKings outlast Suns to extend run to 4 (AP)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)\u2014On a night when the biggest news for the franchise was happening off the court, the youthful Sacramento Kings and their loyal fans were focused only on the game. Inspired by a fan base that has stuck by them in a trying season, Marcus Thornton (notes) scored 24 points and tied a career high with 11 rebounds for the Kings, who won their season-high fourth straight game by defeating the Phoenix Suns 116-113 on Tuesday night. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-349196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\nKings outlast Suns to extend run to 4 (AP) - Ghanamma.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/03\/30\/kings-outlast-suns-to-extend-run-to-4-ap\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Kings outlast Suns to extend run to 4 (AP) - Ghanamma.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"SACRAMENTO, Calif. 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