SACRAMENTO, CALIF. ? While newcomer Cuttino Mobley drew the most interest, a pair of familiar players made the difference for the Sacramento Kings.
Chris Webber had a season-high 36 points and 10 rebounds, and Peja Stojakovic made four 3-pointers and had 24 points in the Kings’ 99-95 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night.
Mobley scored 13 points and blocked four shots in his Kings debut. Mobley, acquired from Orlando for Doug Christie on Monday, struggled in the opening half, but played well in the final two quarters. His driving layup with 1:39 left put the Kings ahead 93-88.
“I wasn’t nervous, basketball is basketball, you just come out there and try to do something,” said Mobley, who missed several open shots in the first half when he was 2-of-7.
The only practice Mobley had before the game was at Saturday’s shootaround. Kings coach Rick Adelman thought Mobley might have been pressing a bit.
“You can see the shots he got tonight and the things we ran for him,” Adelman said. “He got a lot of open looks and I think he was really trying hard.”
The Clippers twice cut the lead to two in the final 8.8 seconds, but Stojakovic made two free throws each time, with the final pair putting the Kings ahead 99-95 with 3.3 seconds left.
Clippers leading scorer Corey Maggette had just 14 points, but five came in the final 8.8 seconds, each time pulling Los Angeles within two points of Sacramento.
“To play a solid game like that, we can take some positives out of this,” Elton Brand said. “We thought we might have had this one up one (point) at the half.”
It was Sacramento’s sixth straight victory over the Clippers and 13th straight at Arco Arena, where Los Angeles hasn’t won since Nov. 7, 1997.
Webber went one-on-one with Brand all game, and Webber held the edge. He consistently hit medium-range jumpers, made several driving shots with his left hand in converting 16-of-25 of field goals and also added six assists.
“When he is stroking it like that, he’s a monster,” Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said of Webber.
Playing more of the power game, Brand was tough to stop down low, getting 25 points and 14 rebounds. Also effective inside, Chris Kaman had a career-high 23 points, while Bobby Simmons added 15 points and 11 rebounds.
“I love battling against E.B.,” Webber said. “He played great and the tough thing about him is if you help (on another player), he’s going to score, so you are in a dilemma.”
The Clippers were coming off two of their biggest wins of the season, a victory against Seattle earlier in the week and Friday’s double-overtime win against Miami.
Shooting primarily from the perimeter, Stojakovic had 11 points and Webber added 10 as Sacramento outscored the Clippers 30-21 in the third quarter and took a 77-69 lead.
Notes: Among the players in attendance from the Kings’ first season in Sacramento (1985-86) were Joe Kleine, Otis Thorpe, Rich Kelley, LaSalle Thompson and Carl Henry. … The Clippers outrebounded Sacramento 56-37. … Maggette, who beat
Miami with a clutch shot in the second overtime, struggled all game, shooting 4-for-13. … After missing the previous game with a sprained ankle, Kings point guard Mike Bibby scored a season-low three points, but had eight assists.
