This road trip hasn't gotten off to a great start for Sacramento with a near loss to Phoenix and an actual one in Oklahoma City. These following games against Dallas and Memphis provide even tougher challenges and Sacramento will have to play much better than they have been if they hope to continue to surprise the league. Tonight's action tips off at 5:30 pm this afternoon on Comcast SportsNet California and on KHTK 1140.

3 THINGS TO LOOK FOR

MATCHUP OF THE GAME

There aren't that many guys who consistently give DeMarcus Cousins trouble, but Tyson Chandler is one of them. The former defensive player of the year has the right mixture of size and strength to deal with Cousins down low, and he's given him fits in the past. Chandler is so effective defensively in part because he doesn't foul much at all. He also doesn't block as many shots as you'd think but rather settles for altering them instead. On the other end of the floor, he's able to punish you in the Pick and Roll and Cousins will have to keep that in mind when switching on defense. DeMarcus will have his work cut out for him today, but if he can get going against Chandler, the Mavericks are in trouble.

PREGAME LIMERICK

In Oklahoma we snapped our win streak,
the rest of the month is pretty bleak.
Time to bounce back,
and give the Mavs a good thwack,
so we get back some of our mystique.

PREDICTION

Kings 109, Mavericks 104 as the Pizza Guy delivers a larger combination of defense and threes.