Marcus Thornton scored a career-high 42 points as the Sacramento Kings won for the first time in March with a 129-119 win over the Golden State Warriors. Sacramento jumped out to a 19-3 lead and never really looked back. Thornton had 26 in the first half alone -- he was a whirlwind of grace and execution, and never really slowed. It was the highest Kings' scoring total since Kevin Martin (who also wore No. 23) dropped 50 early last season.
Samuel Dalembert was also bloody brilliant, with a career-high 27 points and 16 rebounds. DeMarcus Cousins struggled with foul trouble but still managed 15 points and nine rebounds. The Kings just abused the awful Golden State defense; Thornton ran by Monta Ellis repeatedly, and Dalembert, Cousins and Jason Thompson thoroughly abused the Warriors in the paint. (Starting Warrior big men David Lee and Andris Biedrins combined for eight points and four rebounds in 40 minutes.)
If only Sacramento could host the Warriors every night. It's worth noting that Sacramento's defense was not good (Al Thornton scored 23 off the bench!), and the game became a bit contested in the final minutes as Golden State attempted to shrink a nine- to 10-point deficit. Sacramento held on, but that's probably not a win against any of the league's top 20 teams. Even with the 19-3 start.
But enough pessimism. Kings win! The Sacramento Kings win!