The Sacramento Kings were the latest team to say "Hello Brooklyn" on Saturday night. The Brooklyn Nets hosted the Kings in the brand new Barclays Center for the first time.
While both teams started off hot from the floor, the Nets shot a scorching 71.4 percent from the field and ended up shooting 68 percent from the field in the first half compared to the Kings 41.3 percent.
Up 65-47 at halftime, the Nets started to cool down in the second half, but the Kings were only able to shave off two points from their deficit in the third quarter.
Kings coach Keith Smart dug deep into his bench to find a good line-up to compete with the Nets, but the team could never get in a groove as the Kings lost 113-93 to the Nets.
Kings big man DeMarcus Cousins posted a game-high 28 points and team-high 11 rebounds for his sixth-straight double-double, averaging 20.8 points, 11.8 rebound and five assists per game during that stretch. Jason Thompson had 15 points and John Salmons added 13 points.
Brook Lopez had a team-high 18 points for the Nets (19-15). Joe Johnson, Andray Blatche and MarShon Brooks finished with 15 points each.
After ending a four-game road trip, Smart explained why his team lost:
"We didn't have the legs. That's why we didn't have the energy in this game. ... You've got to be perfect playing against this team — a good team like this and obviously they made some incredible shots that were highly contested."
On a positive note, the Kings (13-21) finished with a 2-2 road trip after starting the trip with one road win under their belt for the whole season.
Tyreke Evans eyes a return to the Kings' line-up when they go home to start a five-game homestand on Monday against the Memphis Grizzlies . Tip-off is at 7 p.m. PST.
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