Punchless duo not so dynamic

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – It was the kind of night Tyreke Evans knows the Kings can't afford to have very often this season.

Too many turnovers and not enough offense from the starting backcourt gave the Kings virtually no chance Tuesday night at FedEx Forum as the Memphis Grizzlies won 113-96 in a rout.

Evans had nine points, four assists and four turnovers. Marcus Thornton came into the game averaging 20 points but finished with a season-low five.

Evans knows what will happen if he and Thornton struggle on the same night.

"We won't win too many games," Evans said. "This team needs us to score the ball. We've just got be aggressive and make shots."

Evans and Thornton combined to shoot 6 of 18 (33 percent). The Kings shot 41 percent as a team.

Early this season, the Kings have been at their best when Thornton and Evans have played well.

In the Kings' two wins this season, the duo combined for 47 and 52 points, respectively.

Coach Paul Westphal said the offense shouldn't be dependent on Evans and Thornton to carry the Kings all season.

"We have a lot of guys that can score," Westphal said. "Our forwards can score. I don't think we have to have Marcus and Tyreke score big every night."

The forwards, for the most part, had a tough night, too.

J.J. Hickson had 12 points and 10 rebounds but missed six of nine shots. Travis Outlaw scored 11 points off the bench.

The high-scoring backcourt duo ended up being rookies Jimmer Fredette (17 points) and Isaiah Thomas (15 points), who played the entire fourth quarter. Fredette scored 10 points and Thomas nine in the period.

But if the Kings (2-4) are to be successful, they will need at least one of their starting guards to play well most nights.

The shooting woes of the rest of the team highlighted that Tuesday.

"It's tough when neither one of them (Evans or Thornton) can get it going, but we just had a hard time shooting the ball tonight," Westphal said. "Some nights are going to be like that. I thought we played hard, we didn't play real sharp at times."

The Kings, who have wilted under defensive pressure this season, received a lesson on what to do when a team picks up its intensity.

The Kings fell behind 31-17 after the first quarter but rallied to tie at 50-50 before Rudy Gay's putback at the buzzer gave Memphis a 52-50 halftime lead.

The Grizzlies came out in the second half and played aggressive defense. The Kings committed 11 of their 19 turnovers in the second half.

That defense and balanced offense from the Grizzlies were too much for the Kings to overcome.

Even with All-Star power forward Zach Randolph missing the game with a knee injury, the Grizzlies controlled the lane with 72 points in the paint.

"I think in the second quarter we did a good job of pressuring them and keeping them out the paint," Hickson said. "I just think in the second half it was tough. They ran the floor a lot harder, they got into their sets quicker and that kind of caught us off guard and you see the end result."

• Read more articles by Jason Jones

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