By: Daniel Carp, Grizzlies.com Contributor
Sacramento Kings
Record: 26-46
Standings: 13th in Western Conference, fourth in Pacific Division
Starting Five: PG Ray McCallum, SG Ben McLemore, SF Omri Casspi, PF Rudy Gay, C DeMarcus Cousins
Head Coach: George Karl (first season with team)
Last time out
A massive double-double from center DeMarcus Cousins was not enough to lead the Kings past New Orleans. Despite Cousins' 39 points and 20 rebounds, Sacramento fell 102-88 to the Pelicans Friday at the Smoothie King Center. Former King Tyreke Evans had 25 points and 10 assists for New Orleans, knocking down shots from all over the floor. The Pelicans also dominated the glass, outrebounding Sacramento 47-37.
The Kings held a five-point lead in the third quarter, but an 8-0 run sparked by back-to-back 3-pointers by Quincy Pondexter swung the momentum back in the Pelicans' favor. Cousins finished an alley-oop dunk to pull the Kings within two at 64-62, but New Orleans responded with a 10-1 run spurred by Evans and power forward Anthony Davis.
Last time versus Memphis
The Grizzlies and Kings haven't seen each other since Feb. 25, when a physical battle between Cousins and Zach Randolph resulted in three technical fouls and a 102-90 Sacramento win. Memphis led by a point heading into the final period but went ice cold from the floor, scoring just 13 points in the fourth quarter and coming up short.
Small forward Rudy Gay finished with 28 points, five rebounds and six assists for the Kings, and Cousins added 16 points, nine rebounds and six dimes. Randolph tallied 20 points for the Grizzlies. Both teams were exceptionally sloppy with the basketball and combined for 37 turnovers.
Key matchup
Given the last Grizzlies-Kings matchup's fireworks, all eyes have to once again be on the battle in the post between Randolph and Cousins. There's no telling how much time these players will actually spend guarding one another, but both players are their respective team's emotional leaders and are never afraid to let some sparks fly. With Memphis falling out of the Western Conference's second spot over the weekend, expect him to be especially fired up heading into Monday's matchup.
Misc. Notes
Playoff push
Sacramento is squarely out of the Western Conference playoff picture, 15 games behind eighth-seeded Oklahoma City. With Saturday's loss to the Spurs, the Grizzlies are now in third place in the West, half a game behind the Houston Rockets.
One obscure stat
The Kings are increasingly physical when playing on a Monday. Sacramento commits an average of 22.4 fouls per game on Mondays, compared to just 20.8 for the entire year.