NBA Game Summary - Sacramento at Philadelphia
Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Robert Covington scored 24 points to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 114-107 win over the Sacramento Kings on Friday.
Nerlens Noel had 16 points and 12 rebounds and Jerami Grant chipped in 13 points for Philadelphia, which has won two of its last three since a four-game losing skid.
DeMarcus Cousins had an outstanding performance in defeat, tying a season high of 39 points with a career-high 24 rebounds, also becoming the first player in the NBA this season to record a 30-point, 20-rebound game. Cousins had 22 points and 15 rebounds in the opening half, but the Kings fell for the fifth time in their last six games.
The last player in the NBA to go for as many as 39 points with 24 rebounds was Chris Webber, also playing with Sacramento, in 2001.
Rudy Gay posted 24 points in the setback and Derrick Williams added 15 off the bench. Sacramento closes out its lengthy eight-game road trip on Saturday at Washington.
The Kings led by as many as 18 in the third, but Philadelphia took an 88-82 lead heading into the fourth thanks to an 18-2 run over the final 4:13 of the quarter.
"The flow of the game was ours in the second quarter, the flow of the game turned midway through the third and we never got it back," Kings coach George Karl said.
The Sixers held Sacramento scoreless for 4:29 bridging the third and fourth quarters as they built a 13-point edge. A quick 6-0 burst for the Kings later on in the fourth cut the deficit to seven, 102-95, with under five minutes left.
Cousins continued to assert himself on the inside, with his layup at 1:15 cutting the Kings' deficit to 106-103.
After a turnover by Andre Miller on a transition drive to the basket, Philadelphia ran a slow developing pick-and-roll with Ish Smith baiting Cousins and Ray McCallum to the basket before lobbing it up to Noel for the slam.
Miller was whistled for a loose ball foul on the ensuing Kings possession and Smith knocked down two free throws to secure the win.
"That first half was as poor a defensive half as we played all year. It is a complete misrepresentation of who we are," said Sixers coach Brett Brown. "To the guys credit they found a way to get back in it in a big way."
Covington had eight points over the first four-plus minutes of the game to help the Sixers grab a 14-12 lead. He totaled 11 in the first quarter and the Sixers led 29-22 entering the second quarter.
Sacramento settled in to start the second as it opened the frame on a 15-4 run for a 37-33 lead. The Kings ended the final three minutes of the half on a 15-4 surge. Cousins knocked down two free throws before Williams canned a 3- pointer to stake Sacramento to a 64-51 lead at halftime.