The big story walking into the evening was the return of DeMarcus Cousins to Sacramento. He was given a (mostly) standing ovation during introductions and the Kings also opted to play a well put together tribute video for the controversial big man.

A standing ovation for @boogiecousins in his return to Sacramento pic.twitter.com/zNEdFxumT9

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) October 27, 2017

The game opened with an easy Boogie dunk, and a sense of unease briefly took over the crowd, but that feeling was soon to be forgotten with the hottest start the Kings have enjoyed in their short season.

After the initial score from our former All-Star, Sacramento went on a 25-4 run to build what should have been an insurmountable lead. The same starting lineup that has struggled to start quickly was able to dominate the decimated Pelicans squad early on, scoring 40 points in the first period, the most of any quarter this year. The young bigs were the highlight of the opening salvo, with Willie Cauley-Stein scoring 8 points on a perfect 3/3 shooting and Skal Labissiere scoring 7 quick points in just two minutes.

The second quarter was a bit more back and forth, but De’Aaron Fox, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and Garrett Temple all contributed off the bench and the Kings walked into halftime with a surprising 70-54 lead. At halftime, DeMarcus Cousins had 20 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists, but the top play of the quarter was Skal Labissiere’s huge block.

Superman is in the building! ❌ pic.twitter.com/0UMgaISJrG

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) October 27, 2017

The second half started with the same crew for the past few games: George Hill, Buddy Hield, Justin Jackson, Zach Randolph, and Willie Cauley-Stein. Unlike the unexpected first quarter production, this miserable combination was unable to stop the Pelicans or score the ball on the other end of the court. The Kings were outscored badly, 32-17 and couldn’t find any rhythm on offense. Jrue Holiday torched every Sacramento player put in front of him, scoring 11 points in the 3rd quarter alone. The Pelicans managed to turn a 14 point deficit into a 1 point lead in just 12 minutes of play.

Although they lost, the Kings showed some real fight in the final stretch. Interestingly, after only playing 13 minutes apiece throughout the first 3 quarters, both De’Aaron Fox and Bogdan Bogdanovic played the entire 4th quarter. While Sacramento did their best, DeMarcus Cousins got a couple of favorable calls (I know, I know) and scored 14 points while grabbing 8 rebounds in the final period. Cousins ended the game with a huge statline of 41 points, 23 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block, including 7 of the last 9 New Orleans points, and the dagger 3-pointer to seal the game.

Game Notes: