MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The Grizzlies wanted to put the blowout loss from their last game behind them, and the Sacramento Kings paid the price for Memphis’ recovery.

Rudy Gay scored 23 points, Sam Young added 20 and the Grizzlies beat the Kings 113-96 on Tuesday night.

Memphis’ performance was a big improvement from its lackluster 104-64 loss at Chicago on Sunday.

“We had to get it out of our mind,” said guard Mike Conley, who scored 14 points in his return from an ankle injury. “That was a terrible way to lose. We just didn’t put forth the effort. But I think we did a good job of putting it in the back of our mind. New day, new game.”

O.J. Mayo had 16 points, Marc Gasol also scored 14 and Tony Allen had 10. Gasol also had 15 rebounds as Memphis outrebounded Sacramento 49-41.

“The crazy thing about (Chicago), we didn’t even do any partying or anything the night before to celebrate the New Year,” Mayo said. “We tried to keep it professional, and still came out and got beat by 40. This definitely was a great win to get coming back home.”

Jimmer Fredette scored 17 points and fellow rookie Isaiah Thomas had 15 to lead Sacramento as the Kings’ reserves got extended minutes with Memphis leading by double digits for a bulk of the second half.

“(I did it) for two reasons,” Kings coach Paul Westphal said of playing the bench. “One is that we had a lot of offensive firepower on the floor with Jimmer and Isaiah and (Francisco Garcia). We were able to spread to floor and have a lot of 3-point shooting and get penetration. I thought the best chance to get back in the game was to crack open a few steals and get some threes.

“If that did happen, we would have our starters fresh for the last 5 or 6 minutes. If it didn’t happen, they would be rested for dinner.”

J.J. Hickson was the only Sacramento starter to reach double figures, scoring 12 points. Travis Outlaw added 11. The Kings’ starting backcourt of Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton combined for only 14 points on 6 of 18 shooting.

Memphis finished 55 percent from the field, led by Gasol’s 7 for 10, Mayo at 8 of 11 and Gay 10 for 16. Part of that came from Memphis controlling the paint 72-46.

The Kings shot 41 percent.

DeMarcus Cousins came off the bench, as expected, after missing Sunday’s game against New Orleans when Westphal told him to stay away from the team. Cousins finished with four points on 1-for-5 shooting in 22 minutes.

“I thought we were coming off the bench well,” Cousins said. “Once I got a little sweat, I was into it. I don’t know why I’m missing all these little putbacks. I am missing them, so I have to keep working.”

The Kings were down 17 points early and rallied to tie the score at 50-all in the final minute of the first half. However, Gay’s tip at the buzzer gave the Grizzlies a two-point lead at the break.

“I thought Rudy Gay was a double handful for us throughout the first half and into the next quarter,” Westphal said.

Gay scored 15 points in the first half, and no Kings player was in double digits. Both teams committed eight turnovers, but the Kings shot 12 for 18 in the second quarter to get back into the game.

“In the first half, we went up, we let back up. We went up, we let back up,” Young said. “In the second half, it seemed like we were more focused and played our way of basketball with more consistency.”

Memphis then had a 9-0 run in the early minutes of the third quarter and the Kings never threatened the rest of the way.

The Grizzlies got their offense back on track, scoring off turnovers and getting out on the break. They also started controlling the boards as they extended the lead to 23 late in the third quarter, eventually holding an 87-68 advantage heading into the fourth.

“In the second half, we ran off a 35-18 lead (in the third quarter), and we kept getting stop after stop,” Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. “When we do that and rebound, we are able to run.”

The Sacramento Kings are struggling to open the 2011-12 NBA season. Sacramento lost again on Tuesday January 3 to fall to 2-4 on the season.

The team put together a solid first half before getting blown away in the second half and losing the game 113-96. Not even the return of DeMarcus Cousins helped in this game. Cousins came off the bench and played just 22 minutes. His poor shooting continued as he shot just one out of five from the field on his way to four points and eight rebounds.

The starting unit accounted for only 36 out of 96 points in the game. No NBA team will win a game when they get performances like that from their starting five. The starting unit only made 13 out of 35 shots for just 37% shooting in the game. Sacramento is a young team and needs to get more consistent play out of their stars like Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton.

The one bright spot is that this may have been a breakthrough game for rookie guard Jimmer Fredette. Fredette has struggled coming into this game and has not had an outstanding start to his rookie season. Fredette led the team in scoring and played the most minutes on the team in the loss to Memphis. Fredette made six out of 12 shots including four three pointers on his way to scoring a season high 17 points.

Sacramento also saw a good game off the bench from rookie point guard Isaiah Thomas. Thomas has played very well early on and has earned more playing time off the bench. Thomas finished with 15 points, five rebounds and three assists.

One of the biggest problems the team is having early in the season has been their lack of assisted baskets in games. This directly translates to the stagnant offense that fans are watching in games. The team is not moving the ball well and the offense is struggling because of it. No player on the team has had a game with more than five assists through six games this season.

Sacramento fans shouldn’t panic quite yet. Several of the teams losses have come against quality opponents so far this season. Sacramento needs to start playing better and more consistent basketball. Once they do, victories will come and the improvement will be evident.

Kyle Rapoza is a Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network and a lifelong fan of the Sacramento Kings. He started going to Kings games at age six and has attended hundreds of games since. Follow him on twitter @kyler11.

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Rudy Gay scored 23 points, Sam Young added 20 and the Memphis
Grizzlies beat the Sacramento Kings 113-96 on Tuesday night.

O.J. Mayo had 16 points, and Mike Conley _ returning from an
ankle injury _ and Marc Gasol scored 14 points each. Tony Allen
added 10 points. Gasol also had 15 rebounds as Memphis outrebounded
Sacramento 49-41. Tony Allen had 10 points.

With Memphis holding a double-digit lead for a bulk of the
second half, the Kings’ reserves got extended minutes. Jimmer
Fredette scored 17 points and fellow rookie Isaiah Thomas had 15 to
lead Sacramento.

J.J. Hickson was the only Kings starter to reach double figures,
scoring 12 points. Travis Outlaw added 11.

Memphis finished 55 percent from the field, led by Gasol at 7
for 10 and Gay at 10 for 16. The Kings shot 41 percent.

DeMarcus Cousins came off the bench, as expected, after missing
Sunday’s game against New Orleans when coach Paul Westphal told him
to stay away from the team. Cousins finished with four points on
1-for-5 shooting in 22 minutes.

The Kings were down 17 points early and rallied to tie the score
at 50-all in the final minute. However, Gay’s tip at the buzzer
gave the Grizzlies a two-point lead at the break.

Gay scored 15 points in the first half, and no Kings player was
in double digits. Both teams committed eight turnovers, but the
Kings shot 12 for 18 in the second quarter to get back into the
game.

Memphis then had a 9-0 run in the early minutes of the third
quarter and the Kings never threatened the rest of the way.

The Grizzlies got their offense back on track, scoring off
turnovers and getting out on the break. They also started
controlling the boards as they extended the lead to 23 late in the
third quarter.

Memphis outscored Sacramento 35-18 in the period and led 87-68
going into the fourth.

NOTES: Before the game, Westphal said of the Cousins situation,
“I wouldn’t say it’s resolved. We will see how it plays out. I
think DeMarcus has to continue to show maturity and a desire to go
the same direction as his teammates. We’re all hoping that
happens.” . Conley returned after missing two games with a sprained
left ankle he injured in the second game of the season. .The Kings
were playing the opener of their only stretch of three games in
three days during the compressed season. It was also the third of
five games in six nights. .During the game, it was announced that
Gene Bartow, who served as president of Hoops LLC, the parent
company of FedExForum and the Grizzlies, and a Hall of Fame college
coach, passed away after a long battle with cancer.

The Sacramento Kings have sent two of their young players to the Reno Bighorns, their developmental league team. The team announced that rookie small forward Tyler Honeycutt and second year center Hassan Whiteside would leave Sacramento and join the D-League affiliate.

Both players were drafted in the second round of the NBA draft and were chosen as developmental players. Now they’re getting the opportunity to do just that, develop their game and get the playing time they need to do so. This will be a good move for each player because they should learn more from actual game experience than sitting on the bench and watching.

Whiteside is a seven-foot center who is in his second season and has seen very little playing time with Sacramento. I was hoping that Whiteside had developed enough in the offseason to be able to contribute minutes off the bench this year. Sacramento has just four big men on the roster and recently sent home center DeMarcus Cousins after asking for a trade. Sending Whiteside to the D-League must indicate that the situation with Cousins isn’t serious and he will return soon. Sadly, it also indicates that Whiteside hasn’t improved and is not ready to contribute at the NBA level.

Honeycutt is only five games into his rookie season and was Sacramento’s first of two second round draft choices in the 2011 draft. The other player, point guard Isaiah Thomas, is on the roster and seeing playing time. The biggest difference between the two players is that Thomas had much more experience on the collegiate level and is more ready to play right now. Honeycutt is stuck behind John Salmons, Travis Outlaw, Donte Greene, and Francisco Garcia at his position. This means it is very unlikely he will see playing time this season unless Sacramento is blowing out an opponent or getting blown out.

Fans shouldn’t look too much into players being assigned to the D-League. This will give each player an opportunity to receive more playing time and try to improve their game. Hopefully it helps the team longterm and each player benefits from their time in Reno.

Kyle Rapoza is a Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network and a lifelong fan of the Sacramento Kings. He started going to Kings games at age six and has attended hundreds of games since. Follow him on twitter @kyler11.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Stats that stand out from the New Orleans Hornets’ 96-80 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Sunday night.

1. 15. Hornets’ 3-point attempts.

2. 0. Hornets’ 3-point baskets made, establishing a club record for futility.

3. Plus-19. Hornets rebounding advantage over Kings, 60-41.

4. 11. Turnovers by Hornets starting guards, eight from Jarrett Jack, three from Marco Belinelli.

5. 10. Total turnovers by Kings.

FIRST QUARTER BREAKDOWN

Quarter score: Hornets 22, Kings 21

Hornets points in the paint: 14.

Kings points in the paint: eight.

Hornets second chance points: two.

Kings second chance points: two.

Hornets fast-break points: six.

Kings fast-break points: two.

Hornets biggest lead: seven.

Kings biggest lead: two.

Times tied: four

Hornets leading scorer: Trevor Ariza, Emeka Okafor, six.

Kings leading scorer: Marcus Thornton, Tyreke Evans, seven.

SECOND QUARTER BREAKDOWN

Quarter score: Hornets 18, Kings 17.

Hornets points in the paint: 12.

Kings points in the paint: eight.

Hornets second chance points: three.

Kings second chance points: 0.

Hornets’ fast-break points: four.

Kings fast-break points: five.

Hornets biggest lead: four.

Kings biggest lead: one.

Times tied: three.

Hornets leading scorer: Chris Kaman, six.

Kings leading scorer: John Salmons, five.

THIRD QUARTER BREAKDOWN

Quarter score: Kings 30, Hornets 18

Hornets points in the paint: 12.

Kings points in the paint: 12.

Hornets second chance points: two.

Kings second chance points: two.

Hornets fast-break points: two.

Kings fast-break points 11.

Hornets biggest lead: four.

Kings biggest lead: 14.

Times tied: one.

Hornets leading scorer: Marco Belinelli, six.

Kings leading scorer: Evans, 13.

FOURTH QUARTER BREAKDOWN

Quarter score: Kings 28, Hornets 20

Hornets points in the paint: 16.

Kings points in the paint: 18.

Hornets second chance points: eight.

Kings second chance points: two.

Hornets fast-break points: 0.

Kings fast-break points: nine.

Hornets biggest lead: 0.

Kings biggest lead: 20.

Times tied: 0.

Hornets leading scorer: Carl Landry, six.

Kings leading scorer: Thornton, seven.