(Sportsbooks) - The
Sacramento Kings hope to halt a five-game losing streak Saturday when they welcome the Northwest Division-leading
Denver Nuggets to town.
The Nuggets got back their floor leader, Chauncey Billups, Friday and the result was a 99-97 win over Eastern power Cleveland. Billups, who missed eight of the previous nine games with a groin strain, donated a team-high 23 points as Denver topped the Cavs at the Pepsi Center.
"I didn't want to come back until I could be me, until I could help the team as best I can," Billups said. "And what better time to do it when we're playing against another great team."
Nene scored 20 for the Nuggets, winners in three of their last four. Kenyon Martin ended with 19 points and 12 rebounds and was big down the stretch as Denver was able to capture the victory without All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony, who missed a fourth straight game due to a bruised right knee.
Anthony is expected to remain on the sidelines tonight and return for Monday's game against Minnesota.
The Kings, meanwhile, dropped their fourth straight in Oakland last night when Monta Ellis poured in 39 points and dished out six assists, as the Golden State Warriors rallied to beat Sacramento, 108-101.
Tyreke Evans ended with 25 points and six assists for the Kings. Ime Udoka donated 19 points and 14 rebounds, while Beno Udrih had 14 and six off the bench in defeat.
"They played a messy first half and a better second half, and unfortunately we did just the opposite. They kept attacking, and we stopped attacking," Kings head coach Paul Westphal said. "They took over the game and there was nothing we could do about it. We stopped executing, we stopped playing together, we stopped playing good defense and when you do that, you lose. We didn't run our offense and we acted like we didn't know where we were supposed to be."
Sacramento has won two of the past three meetings in the series, including a 106-101 win at ARCO Arena on Dec. 28. However, Denver was without Billups in that contest.
