Artest leads Kings over Hawks

Artest added six assists and six steals and Kenny Thomas had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Kings, who have won four of their last five attempts. Brad Miller scored 15 points and grabbed nine boards and Mike Bibby contributed 13 points and four assists in the win.

Joe Johnson and Josh Childress netted 13 apiece and Salim Stoudamire scored 12 for the Hawks, who have lost two in a row and three of their last four games.

Sacramento led 18-11 on Martin’s free throws, but the Hawks went on a 10-4 run, capped by Marvin Williams’ dunk, to cut the deficit to 22-21. The Kings held a 25-23 advantage after the opening frame.

The Kings opened the second quarter with an 11-2 spurt, including seven points from Artest, to extend the lead 36-25. Atlanta countered with an 11-5 run, highlighted by Johnson’s three-pointer, which brought the Hawks within five, 41-36. Sacramento led 48-40 heading into the locker room.

Josh Smith’s jumper narrowed the gap to 54-46, however, the Kings blew the game wide open with a 20-5 run, which began with Martin’s three-point play. Miller and Artest also converted three-point plays and Miller’s jump shot with 2:24 remaining ended the streak to give Sacramento a commanding 74-51 edge.

The Hawks trailed 78-58 heading into the fourth quarter.

Stoudamire’s jumper narrowed the deficit to 80-65 but the Kings built their lead to 89-67 with a 9-2 spurt, including a pair of baskets from Shareef Abdur-Rahim. With the game already out of reach Sacramento closed the contest with a 13-6 streak.

Game Notes

Sacramento shot 52 percent from the field, while Atlanta shot 39 percent from the floor...The Kings held a 46-35 rebounding edge...Sacramento has won five straight and nine of the last 10 meetings...Atlanta has lost six consecutive contests at Arco Arena...The Kings are 17-11 at home and the Hawks are 4-20 as the visitor...Abdur-Rahim added 10 points and eight boards...Francisco Garcia had 10 points and seven rebounds.Williams scored 10 points...Smith had 10 points.