FOURTH QUARTER (Kings 106, Denver 101)
On this night, the Denver Nuggets missed their best guard more than the Kings.
Sacramento ended a two-game losing streak with a 106-101 win over the Nuggets. The Kings won with Tyreke Evans watching with his right foot in a walking boot to protect his sprained right ankle.
The Nuggets were without All-Star guard Chauncey Billups who is out with a groin injury.
The Kings (14-16) had dropped consecutive games to Cleveland and the Lakers before finally knocking of a division leader in the Nuggets.
Five Kings scored in double figures led by Andres Nocioni, who came off the bench to score a season-high 21 points. Four of five starters scored in double figures with Donte' Greene and Beno Udrih each tallying 17 minutes. Jason Thompson had 15 points and 11 rebounds.
But the star of the game might have been Jon Brockman, who energized the Kings with his play off the bench in the second half. He grabbed 10 rebounds in just 16 minutes and from the reaction in Arco Arena, he's quickly becoming a popular figure for his tenacity.
Carmelo Anthony led the Nuggets with 34 points. Nene had a season-high 25 points for Denver (20-12).
--Jason Jones
THIRD QUARTER (Kings 75, Denver 70)
Jon Brockman entered the game and the energy for the Kings went up a few notches. Brockman's activity resulted in him grabbing five rebounds and adding four points as the Kings took a 75-70 lead.
Brockman did his work in just 4 minutes, 23 seconds on the floor.
The Kings outscored the Nuggets, 28-22, led by Donte' Greene's six points to give him 15 for the game.
Carmelo Anthony steal leads all scorers with 26 points on 12 of 28 shooting.
--Jason Jones
SECOND QUARTER (Denver 48, Kings 47)
Carmelo Anthony is showing why he's the league's leading scorer, as he has 19 points at halftime on 9 of 21 shooting. The Kings have stayed close largely thanks to their second-quarter defense, as Denver hit just 6 of 23 shots in the period. Andres Nocioni has 11 points to lead the Kings and Donte' Greene has nine.
FIRST QUARTER (Denver 32, Kings 26)
No Tyreke Evans tonight apparently means no reason for Denver to worry. So far anyways.
Even without their own dynamic point guard in Chauncey Billups, the Nuggets have been predictably hard to handle for these youthful Kings. Denver has shot 51.9 percent, with Carmelo Anthony scoring 11 points. The Kings already have six turnovers, and are led by Donte' Greene's nine points.
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