[Peja Vu]

[Peja Vu]

Tonight's game: Miami (11-45) at Kings (26-32)

Tipoff: 6 p.m.

Where: Arco Arena

TV: CSN

Radio: KHTK (1140 AM)

Head to head: Ron Artest said it all after the Kings' 21-point loss at Miami on Tuesday, stopping halfway through his optimistic spin to ask just how bad the Heat had been. "They lost 26 out of 27 (games)?" he said when informed of Miami's record before it downed the Kings. "Wow." Yet history is on the Kings' side this time, just as it was against them before. Although they are 3-17 in Miami, they have won 12 of 19 against the Heat at Arco Arena.

Heat update: The talent on Miami's roster has always looked far better than its record, although its win over the Kings might have started something on that front. The Heat fell to the Lakers two days after beating Sacramento, but it defeated Seattle on Friday night for its third win since Dec. 22.

Heat injuries: C Alonzo Mourning (torn right patella and quadriceps tendon, out).

Kings injuries: PF Shareef Abdur-Rahim (right knee surgery, out).

Probable starters

KINGS

19 Beno Udrih PG

23 Kevin Martin SG

93 Ron Artest SF

33 Mikki Moore PF

52 Brad Miller C

HEAT

55 Jason Williams PG

3 Dwyane Wade SG

7 Shawn Marion SF

40 Udonis Haslem PF

15 Mark Blount C

[Peja Vu]

I wish I had been able to see tonights game! Down 20 at half time, the Kings had a 71 point second half, and won by 11.

Kings 120, Heat 109

Udrih: 23 Points (9/12 FG), 9 Assists, and 3 Steals.
Artest: 32 Points(12/22 FG)
Martin: 29 Points (14/17 FT)

[Peja Vu]

Heating up for a comeback: Down by 23, Kings show grit

There was no yelling in the locker room this time except for the celebratory kind. There were no challenges of manhood except the one the Kings had met collectively.

The Kings, whose private postgame locker room scene after their debacle of a defeat in Miami on Tuesday was likely the worst of the season, avoided what would have been a disastrous double-up Sunday night at Arco Arena.

Their 120-109 victory over the Heat in the rematch was remarkable in what it reflected. The Kings looked like a team without any lasting will or desire in the first half, only to produce a second half in which their inspired play sent a different message.

Down by 23 points in the first half, the Kings exploded for a 49-16 run from early in the third quarter to midway through the fourth. An announced crowd of 15,028 that had booed early turned into a frenetic fanbase so glad its team had not given up.

It was certainly the question of the moment. The Kings entered Sunday with a 26-32 record, the same they had at this point last season under coach Eric Musselman. And although they had lost with some measure of dignity – if not defense – in Dallas on Friday, they were on a four-game losing streak that might have signaled the beginning of the end just like before.

With reaching the playoffs a borderline-absurd notion, objective No. 1 was to avoid the sort of 6-17 slide down the stretch that led to Musselman's firing and so much disgust from the team's fans. Showing a pulse when there didn't seem to be one – especially against the same team that had won for just the second time in 28 games by beating the Kings on Tuesday – was a move toward progress.

"You start to get the feel of, Is this who we are?" Kings coach Reggie Theus said. "And it's not who we are. I know that because I've seen it all year with our guys having the most fight every night. Again, they showed that that's not who they want to be. They want to win, and you just have to stay in the trenches with them."

Though Theus played nine players at least eight minutes, he put the onus on his starters to recover from the Heat's burn. Kevin Martin was among those repaying him for the move. The shooting guard scored 18 of his 29 points in the third quarter.

Small forward Ron Artest and point guard Beno Udrih also had big third quarters, scoring 11 points each. Artest finished with 32 points, and Udrih had 23.

It was the Kings' defense, though, which finally awoke after a 7 1/2 game slumber. After shooting 68.4 percent in the first half, Miami hit just 14 of 33 (42.4 percent) in the second half.

The comeback was complete with 1:24 left in the third quarter, when a Martin three-pointer from the left corner tied it 87-87. Udrih maintained the momentum, hitting a three from the same spot some 30 seconds later to put the Kings ahead by three. They led by as many as 13 points in the fourth quarter.

[Peja Vu]

Lakers, Kings renew rivalry: It doesn't quite hold the significance or acrimony of seasons past, but Sacramento could still be a factor in the role of spoiler

Where have you guys been all season?

The Lakers run into an old foe, finally, heading north to play the Sacramento Kings tonight in a rivalry that held plenty of significance earlier this decade.

Be it Doug Christie and Rick Fox throwing punches at each other in an exhibition game, Shaquille O'Neal calling the Kings the "Queens," or Phil Jackson referring to the state capital as a "cow town," the memories are there for the taking, even if the Kings (27-32) are on the cusp of a second consecutive losing season after a franchise-record eight playoff appearances in a row.

Regardless, the Lakers (42-18) are leery about returning to one of the more vocal environments in the league, even if it's later than usual in the season because of a scheduling quirk.

In fact, the Kings will play a decisive part in the Lakers' efforts to stay near the top of the Western Conference -- the teams play each other four times in the Lakers' last 22 games.

"They're certainly a spoiler," Jackson said. "We are serious about how difficult it's going to be to go there and win."

Jackson pointed to the Kings' 18-10 record at home, while the Lakers spoke ofhistorical factors.

It would be impossible for Derek Fisher to talk about the Lakers-Kings rivalry without thinking of Robert Horry's three-point dagger in the 2002 Western Conference finals or Kobe Bryant's room-service food poisoning in the same series that led to a host of conspiracy theories.

The Lakers eliminated the Kings in all three of their most recent championship seasons.

"It was one of the great ones for a few years there, full of emotion and two really talented teams, even though we got the fair share of wins in terms of playoff series," Fisher said. "Going back to Sacramento without the Lakers for a few years, I was still getting booed, actually, so I can't imagine how they're going to feel when I show up [tonight] with the purple and gold on again."

[Peja Vu]

Tonight's Game: L.A. Lakers (42-18) at Kings (27-32)

Tipoff: 7 p.m.

Where: Arco Arena

TV/Radio: CSN; KHTK (1140 AM)

Head to head: In the first meeting of the regular season, the Lakers enter with 14 victories in their last 16 games. The Lakers have a 69-28 record against the Kings in the Sacramento era. However, in the last 10 meetings at Arco Arena, the Kings are 6-4.

Lakers update: Kobe Bryant is coming off a sensational effort Sunday, scoring an NBA season-high 52 points against Dallas. Bryant is 11 shy of 21,000 career points.

Lakers injuries: SF Trevor Ariza (fractured right foot, out); SG Kobe Bryant (torn ligament, right little finger, probable); C Andrew Bynum (subluxated patella, left knee, out); C Chris Mihm (right ankle surgery, out); PF/SF Vladimir Radmanovic (strained right calf, day-to-day).

Kings injuries: PF Shareef Abdur-Rahim (right knee surgery, out).

Probable starters

KINGS
19 Beno Udrih PG
23 Kevin Martin SG
93 Ron Artest SF
33 Mikki Moore PF
52 Brad Miller C

LAKERS
2 Derek Fisher PG
24 Kobe Bryant SG
4 Luke Walton SF
7 Lamar Odom PF
16 Pau Gasol C

[Basel57]

Good luck. You're going to need it.

[Peja Vu]

There needs to be an Amber Alert for Kevin Martin. Dude disappeared.

[Peja Vu]

Bryant, Lakers come from behind to defeat Kings

With the chants of "MVP" inside a packed Arco Arena, Kobe Bryant sank both of his free throws with a little more than four minutes remaining to give the Lakers their first lead of the night and enough momentum to carry them to a 117-105 win Tuesday.

The Kings led by as many as 13 points against their division rivals in front of the first announced sellout of 17,317 since a Dec. 26 loss to Boston.

"When you have a game like this, you can always tell there is something in the air," coach Reggie Theus said. "It's a great challenge. Any time you mention L.A. around here and even in L.A., because I've lived both places, you get a little bit of a rise out of people. I think it has everything to do with the battles they had years ago."

And it was quite the battle Tuesday, or at least until late in the fourth quarter with the Lakers outscoring the Kings 36-18. Bryant finished the night with 34 points, including 17 point in the Lakers' fourth quarter comeback. Pau Gasol added 31 points.

Ron Artest and Kevin Martin added 23 points each, mostly in the first three quarters. Martin was scoreless in the fourth, while Artest scored four points.

[CubanLaker]

Good game guys. Hell of a battle.

[Basel57]

Crazy, crazy game. We probably should have lost that game, but we came through when it mattered most.

[Bartholomew Hunt]

good game.. no worries, easy win for you guys tonight..