Salmons Pours In 29, Undermanned Kings Shock Hornets 105-96

Posted by Stephen Rhodes under NBA Game Recap, NBA Injuries

The Sacramento Kings, without a doubt, miss not having Kevin Martin (ankle sprain), Francisco Garcia (right calf) and Mikki Moore (ankle sprain) in their lineup. In Wednesday night’s game against the New Orleans Hornets, they once again had to find their offense wherever they could. Tonight’s power source happened to be John Salmons who as of late has been doing a good imitation of Martin; Salmons drained 29 points in leading Sacramento to a 105-96 win over New Orleans at New Orleans Arena.

The Hornets looked like their usual selves as they took an ewarly 9-2 lead, forcing the Kings to take a timeout; New Orleans’ Chris Paul scored 11 points, had 5 assists and 3 steals while the Hornets went ahead 29-20 in the first quarter. But Sacramento would respond with a 7-0 run midway through the second period, getting to 41-39, thanks to a 3-pointer by rookie Donte Greene; neither team played defense as the Hornets shot 58.5% from the floor while the Kings shot 57.6%. New Orleans would take a 54-51 lead into their locker room.

Ahead 77-76 after three quarters, the Hornets manufactured an 8-0 run to begin the fourth period; Salmons would lead a Kings charge as he scored 6 consecutive points to put Sacramento ahead 85-84. Bobby Jackson would make a huge difference for the Kings as he drained a 3-pointer to give Sacramento the lead for good at 90-88.

Sacramento’s leading scorer was Salmons with 29 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists and a steal while Greene scored a career-high 15 (including three 3-pointers) with 2 rebounds and an assist. New Orleans was led by David West with 22 points, a rebound, 3 assists and a steal while Paul added 20 with 3 rebounds, 15 assists and 4 steals. Sacramento (5-8) returns home to host the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday while New Orleans (5-5) makes the short trip to Oklahoma City to take on the Thunder – also on Friday.

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