FINAL
Thunder 120, Kings 112
DeMarcus Cousins scored a season-high 30 points to go with nine rebounds but the Kings didn't have enough to overcome the playoff-bound Oklahoma City Thunder at Power Balance Pavilion.
Cousins made 18-of-21 free throws. The free throw attempts and makes were records for a rookie in the Sacramento era.
Travis May held the previous record with 17 makes Feb. 6, 1991 against Portland. Lionel Simmons. Tyreke Evans had the previous record for attempts as a rookie with 19 on Nov. 7, 2009 at Utah.
Marcus Thornton and Beno Udrih each had 21 points for the Kings. Jason Thompson added 16 points off the bench.
Kevin Durant led the Thunder (55-26) with 32 points. Russell Westbrook added 30 point and nine assists.
Oklahoma City shot 57.3 percent for the game to overcome committing 19 turnovers.
There were plenty of fouls for both teams. Oklahoma City was called for 26 and the Kings were assessed 25 fouls. The Kings also had three technical fouls (Cousins, Thompson and Donte Greene).
Kings coach Paul Westphal was asked how he felt the Kings dealt the Thunder's physical play.
"It's not easy to keep your composure with some of the situations we were faced with," Westphal said. "That's all I'm going to say about that."
THIRD QUARTER
Thunder 87, Kings 84
*The Kings' shooting wasn't good in the third quarter (23.1 percent). They missed 20 of their 26 shots while the Thunder shot 68.4 percent after making 13-of-19 in the third quarter.
*DeMarcus Cousins scored 12 of his 20 points in the third quarter. Cousins also has nine rebounds. Marcus Thornton has 19 points.
*Serge Ibaka and Russell Westbrook dominated the third with their offense. Ibaka had 12 points and Westbrook added 11 points. Westbrook leads all scorers with 26 points. Kevin Durant has 23 points for the game after scoring nine in the third. Ibaka has 12 points for the game.
HALFTIME
Kings 57, Thunder 51
*The Kings are doing some good things defensively against one of the better teams in the NBA. Oklahoma City is shooting 51.2 percent, but the Kings have forced nine turnovers. Sacramento has 16 points off those turnovers, which is a big reason the Kings lead.
*The Kings are also doing a good job of taking care of the ball. Sacramento only has six turnovers.
*Marcus Thornton shook off a slow shooting start and made all four of his field goals in the second quarter. Thornton has 14 points. Also with 14 points is Jason Thompson, who is having another good game off the bench. Beno Udrih has eight points, five rebounds and five assists.
*Russell Westbrook is doing what you'd expect for the Thunder with 15 points and six assists. The same could be said for Kevin Durant (14 points). But what you don't expect from the Thunder is 10 pints ff the bench from Nazr Mohammed. Mohammed made all five of his shots in the first half.
*The Kings are now shooting 53.7 percent for the game after making 14-of-20 shots in the second quarter (70 percent).
HALFTIME
Kings 57, Thunder 51
*The Kings are doing some good things defensively against one of the better teams in the NBA. Oklahoma City is shooting 51.2 percent, but the Kings have forced nine turnovers. Sacramento has 16 points off those turnovers, which is a big reason the Kings lead.
*The Kings are also doing a good job of taking care of the ball. Sacramento only has six turnovers.
*Marcus Thornton shook off a slow shooting start and made all four of his field goals in the second quarter. Thornton has 14 points. Also with 14 points is Jason Thompson, who is having another good game off the bench. Beno Udrih has eight points, five rebounds and five assists.
*Russell Westbrook is doing what you'd expect for the Thunder with 15 points and six assists. The same could be said for Kevin Durant (14 points). But what you don't expect from the Thunder is 10 pints ff the bench from Nazr Mohammed. Mohammed made all five of his shots in the first half.
*The Kings are now shooting 53.7 percent for the game after making 14-of-20 shots in the second quarter (70 percent).
FIRST QUARTER
Thunder 24, Kings 20
*With Tyreke Evans out with a sprained left ankle, Beno Udrih is starting in his place and off to a good start. Udrih has six points, five rebounds and two assists. Marcus Thronton also has six points for the Kings, but has missed for of his five field goals.
*DeMarcus Cousins played eight minutes before being pulled, presumably to prevent him from picking up a technical foul. Cousins was frustrated that he wasn't getting any calls when shooting around the rim and stopped to look at officials a couple of times before getting back on defense.
*It's no secret the Kings are going to struggle to stay in front of Thunder guard Russell Westbrook. And Westbrook is off to a fast start with nine points and three assists. Kevin Durant has seven points.
*The Kings are shooting 38.1 percent (8-of-21).
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