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Kings Overpower Bulls on National TV

In front of Legends Chris Webber and Mike Bibby and a national T.V. audience, the Sacramento Kings put on a show against one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

Coming into the game, the Chicago Bulls were dominant on the road, winning six straight and holding opponents to 94.7 points per game. But Thursday was Sacramento’s night.

Fans from all over the nation witnessed the Kings dish out a season-high 26 assists and shoot 51-percent from the floor en route to a convincing 103-88 victory inside Sleep Train Arena.

Much as he has done all season, DeMarcus led the way with 22 points on 9-of-19 shooting, while adding 14 rebounds for his fifth-straightdouble-double and ninth of the young season. Fresh off a contract-extension, Rudy Gay chipped in 20 points and 7 boards, while Collison tallied his second double-double in as many games with 17 points and 12 assists, the latter of which was a season-high.

“It’s a good feeling every time you win in this league," admitted No. 7 afterwards. "Even against a good Chicago Bulls team that’s been playing well on the road, it is a good feeling. But at the same time it feels good that we got back to the basics. We were playing defense, we ran the floor when we needed to, we made the extra pass when we needed to.”

Under the bright lights of the NBA on TNT camera crews, the home team got off to a hot start in the first half shooting 54-percent from the field and connecting on 3-of-4 triples. Gay led the way with 13 points on an efficient 5-for-7 clip from the floor, adding six boards in 19 minutes.

Despite falling behind 29-22 at the end of the first quarter, the Kings used a big 30-18 run in the second quarter to retake thelead before halftime. Sacramento shot a blistering 63-percent from the floor during in that 12-minute stretch, while holding the Bulls to a meager 38-percent.

With three minutes left in the second period after the Bulls tied the game at 41-all, the Kings used a 7-0 run to take a commanding leadinto the locker room. Gay began the run with a jumper and ended it with a layup in traffic. Derrick Williams, who had a productive 10 points in the first half, added a two-handed slam as the Kings took a 48-41 lead.

With time winding down in the opening half, the Bulls cut the lead to five, 52-47, but the home team still held all the momentum at intermission.

After their breather, the purple and black used a 24-14 spurt at the start the second half to pull away from their guests. The run was spearheaded by the play of their dominant center. Boogie scored 10 of his game-high 22 points in the third frame on 4-of-6 shooting.

At the 8:45 mark in the third, shooting guard Ben McLemore tallied his third triple of the game as the Kings lead swelled to 12 points, 61-49. Although the Bulls pulled back within single digits for a solid five-minute stretch, theRiver City used another run to end the period with a 12-point lead, 80-68.

This time, Collison spurred the run with five points, including two 20-foot-plus jumpers from near the top of the key. The Kings Defense contributed 10 points in that third frame converting six turnovers on the other end of the court.

“Chicago came out from halftime with a great sense of desperation," said Kings Coach Michael Malone. "They were killing us on the glass. Jimmy Butler and one of their bigs were just outworking us. We were forcing shots, but we were not finishing off the game with a defensive rebound, which was disconcerting at the time. Once we put DeMarcus Cousins and Carl Landry back in, we were able to weather the storm and go on a run ourselves."

The Kings outscored the Bulls in three of the four quarters on Thursday, including the fourth, 23-20, despite the teams identical shooting percentages (40%). Cousins and Omri Casspi handled the scoring duties down the stretch as each tallied 6 points in the final 12 minutes, while Collison added four of his own. DC7 has been very impressive over the past two games distributing 23 assists, while turning the ball over just once.

In all, six players finished in double-figures as the City of Trees racked up an eye-popping 50 points in the paint against the strong Bulls frontcourt.

On the other end, Chicago was led by Jimmy Butler, who scored 23 points and was the only player to finish with more than 12 on the night.

“I think obviously we didn’t play a perfect game – we can’t, but we’re going to keep on striving to be perfect," said forward Rudy Gay. "We beat a good team today – a great team. We gave them their first real loss – a well-coached team, a team that just beat the Clippers – so it’s definitely a statement game for us. I think we needed this win especially coming off last game when we thought we should’ve had it.”

Boogie Trending

Thanks to his impressive outing versus the Bulls, DeMarcus Cousins was trending on Twitter nationally after the game. His dominance in the paint and on the glass has put the world on notice. This year, DMC owns a PIE (Player-Impact-Estimate) of 18.8 - the third highest in the NBA, minimum five games, according to NBA.com/stats.

Paired against Joakim Noah - a player known for his defensive ability - Big Cuz put his team on his back and carried the Kings in the third period. Whether he was snagging loose ball rebounds for aggressive put-back jams or overpowering Bulls defenders en route to a hard-earned layup, Boogie was nearly unstoppable after halftime.

No. 15 has also been impressive on defense this year. One game removed for an impressive block against Jrue Holiday on a fast-break attempt, Cousins was all over the court again. This time, the big man held Noah to 10 points on 5-of-13 shooting. His defensive rating at home this year in six games is a solid 97.4, ranking him seventh in the league among centers according to NBA.com.

TNT Catches up with Rudy After the Win

Sign Lady’s Special Moment

Before the game, ESPN Fan Hall of Famer Barbara “Sign Lady” Rust was able to meet with one of her all-time favorite players in the tunnel of Sleep Train Arena. Making his appearance for Legends Night, Chris Webber took time out of his pre-game schedule to meet with fans and answer questions.

It was a special moment for all involved.

“I love this Legends idea,” Rust admitted. “It’s great for the long-time fans like my husband, Niko, and I, but it’s also great for the new, young fans. They get to see the people they watched growing up. Nik [Stauskas] talked about that when he came here. Now they get to see these guys and talk to them, so it’s a special moment for all.”

Legends Come Home

Returning to Sacramento in an exclusive pairing, Kings legends Mike Bibby and Chris Webber were the guests of honor for the team’s matchup against the Bulls. Bibby joined Sacramento Kings fans pregame for aquestion-and-answer session, while Webber met with current Kings for a pregame pep talk and both were celebrated in front of a near-capacity crowd midway through the first quarter.