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Tuesday, Dec. 19 10:30pm ET
Kings stay on top in West

RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME FLOW

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- In a game in which their high-powered offense wasn't always functioning properly, the Sacramento Kings relied on their newest weapon -- defense.

Chris Webber had 19 points and 11 rebounds Tuesday night as the Kings played solid defense to cruise past the Washington Wizards 106-72.

The victory was the seventh straight at home for the Kings, who are off to the best start in franchise history, surpassing the 1951-52 Rochester Royals.

The Kings (17-6) also have the top record in the Western Conference.

It was the fewest points allowed by the Kings this year and the lowest point total all season for the Wizards. Sacramento had 12 blocks and 14 steals, leading to a number of easy baskets.

"That's the type of game we have to play, our offense isn't going to be clicking every night," said Webber, who had three blocks. "That is the difference between this year's team and last year's team, we play much better defense now."

It was the biggest loss for Washington since March 16, 1994, when the Wizards fell to the Los Angeles Lakers 129-94.

"Early in the game we didn't take advantage of the shots they were taking, they were coming down and shooting quickly," Wizards forward Tyrone Nesby said. "We killed ourselves in this game."

After trailing early in the second quarter, the Kings went on a 17-2 run, erasing a two-point deficit to take a 42-29 lead with 3:12 remaining.

The lead remained in double digits for the rest of the game and went over the 30-point mark early in the fourth quarter.

Vlade Divac had 15 points and nine rebounds for the Kings, who won their third straight game. Reserve Lawrence Funderburke made all seven of his shots and finished with a season-high 16 points, while Doug Christie had 15 and seven rebounds.

"As bad as you can be on offense, we maintained at the other end," Kings coach Rick Adelman said. "We blocked shots and had our hands on a lot of balls. If we keep bringing it defensively every night, we'll be tough to beat, especially in this building."

Rod Strickland scored 13 points for Washington, which has dropped 10 of 11 games. Tyrone Nesby added 12 points.

Washington shot 36 percent from the field, committed 23 turnovers and was horrible from the free-throw line (10-of-23).

"We had been playing well and executing, but then we reversed back to our same old selves," Strickland said. "They got out on the break and executed and got a lot of easy baskets."

With Washington still struggling on offense in the third quarter, the Kings went on another run, scoring 12 straight points to assume a 74-49 advantage with 2:17 left in the period.

Jason Williams, who went scoreless in the first half, made two 3-pointers in the run and Webber added four points for Sacramento, which outscored Washington 27-20 in the third quarter.

Divac enjoyed a big first half, scoring 13 points. Webber had nine points and seven rebounds in the first half for the Kings, who outscored Washington 28-11 in the second quarter.

Game notes
Kings backup center Scot Pollard injured his ankle in the fourth quarter and will probably miss Wednesday night's game in Seattle. ... Washington converted just 5-of-13 free throws in the opening half. ... Kings starting guard Peja Stojakovic missed his seventh straight game with a shoulder injury, but may be available tonight. ... Washington has lost five straight games to Sacramento.
ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard

Washington Clubhouse

Sacramento Clubhouse


RECAPS
Toronto 103
Utah 95

Atlanta 87
New York 77

LA Lakers 81
Miami 79

Indiana 90
Chicago 85

San Antonio 86
Houston 79

Detroit 89
Phoenix 84

Golden State 120
Minnesota 99

Sacramento 106
Washington 72

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