The Nets (36-36) are in seventh place in the Eastern Conference but have dropped the first three contests of a seven-game road trip.

Brooklyn lost to Oklahoma City (108-96) and Utah (114-98) to begin the trip and fell 119-116 to the Clippers on Sunday night when Sixth Man extraordinaire Lou Williams buried the winning 3-point basket as time expired.

"It was a heck of shot. I don't know -- 35-foot shot," Nets coach Kenny Atkinson told reporters of the final sequence. "We definitely didn't want to foul him, because we know how good he is at drawing fouls in those situations. I think we forced him into something tougher than normal."

The Knicks moved into sole possession of last place in the NBA after they lost to the Sacramento Kings 115-108 on Monday at Golden 1 Center. >> Box score

Things to know about Monday's game

1. The Knicks trailed by four midway through the third quarter, but Sacramento went on a 21-11 run that bled into the fourth to take a 94-80 lead with 10:04 remaining.

2. Coupled with the Suns' upset win over the Milwaukee Bucks, who own the NBA's best record, the Knicks fell to 13-51, 0.5 games behind Phoenix in the standings.

In his first game at The Rock since leaving the Devils in 2013, Ilya Kovalchuk put the exclamation point on the Kings' 5-1 win Tuesday against the Devils. The Kings broke a tie early in the third by scoring three times in a span of 1:20. >> Box score

First period:

• 6:21 LAK Adrian Kempe; Assists: Carl Hagelin

Second period:

• 3:31 NJD Pavel Zacha; Assists: Jesper Bratt, Drew Stafford

Ilya Kovalchuk isn't expecting a warm reception at The Rock Tuesday night when the former Devil and current King makes his first return to Newark since departing the team in 2013. 

"I am pretty sure there will be a lot of booing, but I love that, so it's all good," Kovalchuk said, per NHL.com.

The Devils acquired Kovalchuk from the Atlanta Thrashers at the 2010 trade deadline, and in the offseason the Devils signed the goal-scoring winger to a 17-year, $102 million contract, a deal which was ultimately rejected by the NHL for cap-cirumvention. A 15-year, $100 million deal was approved. 

The Rangers blew three separate one-goal leads, including one in the final minute of regulation, as New York lost to the Kings in overtime 4-3 on Monday at Madison Square Garden. >> Box score

First period:

• 8:32 NYR Chris Kreider; Assists: Tony DeAngelo, Mika Zibanejad
• 17:23 LA Adrian Kempe; Assists: Ilya Kovalchuk, Carl Hagelin

A slow start and an inability to finish Saturday night cost the New York Rangers and Los Angeles Kings chances to beat two of the NHL's elite teams and make up ground in their long-shot playoff pursuits.

The Rangers and Kings will look to author more complete performances Monday night, when New York hosts Los Angeles at Madison Square Garden.

Both teams were off Sunday following narrow defeats Saturday, when the Rangers fell to the visiting NHL-leading Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 and the Kings squandered a third-period lead in a 4-2 loss to the host New York Islanders.

The Islanders scored three unanswered goals in the final 6:14 of the third period as they beat the Los Angeles Kings 4-2 on Saturday at Nassau Coliseum. >> Box score

Third period:

• 13:15 LA Ilya Kovalchuk; Assists: Dustin Brown, Anze Kopitar
• 13:46 NYI Mathew Barzal; Assists: Ryan Pulock, Josh Bailey
• 17:37 NYI Michael Dal Colle; Assists: Ryan Pulock, Leo Komarov
• 18:29 NYI Brock Nelson (ENG); Assists: Ryan Pulock, Cal Clutterbuck

D'Angelo Russell had 31 points and eight assists, and the surging Brooklyn Nets won their fourth straight game by running away from the Sacramento Kings in the second half Monday for a 123-94 victory.

Russell, announced as the Eastern Conference player of the week shortly before the game, made seven 3-pointers. He hit all four 3-point attempts and was 5 for 6 overall in the third quarter, fueling a 22-4 spurt that launched the Nets into the lead for good.

Joe Harris added 19 points and rookie Rodions Kurucs had 16 for the Nets, who won for the 17th time in 22 games.

The Brooklyn Nets and Sacramento Kings spent part of their weekend producing thrilling road victories thanks to clutch performances by starting guards.

Only one team will get to experience the satisfaction of getting a win Monday afternoon when D'Angelo Russell and the Nets host Buddy Hield and the Kings.

The Nets (24-23) are returning home after two impressive road wins for differing reasons.

The Devils got back in the win column after a six-game losing skid to down the lowly Kings in Los Angeles, 6-3. >> Box score

First period:

• 13:49 NJD Kyle Palmieri (Power play); Assists: Taylor Hall, Will Butcher
• 15:41 LAK Brendan Leipsic; Assists: Jake Muzzin, Alec Martinez

Second period:

• 0:25 NJD Travis Zajac (Unassisted)
• 6:59 LAK Adrian Kempe; Assists: Drew Doughty, Austin Wagner
• 10:57 NJD Kyle Palmieri; Assists: Taylor Hall
• 12:28 NJD Will Butcher; Assists: Miles Wood, Travis Zajac
• 17:37 LAK Kyle Clifford (Unassisted)

Third period:

• 11:06 NJD Nico Hischier; Assists: Sami Vatanen, Taylor Hall
• 19:52 NJD Blake Coleman (Empty net); Assists: Andy Greene, Damon Severson

Henrik Lundqvist allowed a go-ahead goal to Alec Martinez with 55 seconds remaining as the Rangers lost to the Los Angeles Kings 4-3 on Sunday at Staples Center. >> Box score

First period:

• 11:11 NYR Vladislav Namestnikov; Assist: Pavel Buchnevich

As expected, the losing has come in waves for the Sacramento Kings all season. For the New York Knicks, the unending L's have come only more recently, accentuated by the loss of their best player.

So neither will be in the cheeriest of moods when they get together Sunday night at the Golden 1 Center and play another in the end-of-season string contests.

NEW YORK (AP) George Hill scored 22 points, Zach Randolph added 21 and the Sacramento Kings completed their first back-to-back sweep of the season by beating the Brooklyn Nets 104-99 on Wednesday night.

The Kings got off to a sizzling start following their victory in Philadelphia a night earlier, then held on after Brooklyn cut a 21-point lead to two with just over a minute to play. >> Read more

Two teams with similar records, but lately headed in opposite directions, meet on Tuesday night when the New Jersey Devils host the Los Angeles Kings at the Prudential Center.

The Devils (20-19-9) are coming off a rousing 4-1 road victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, their fourth win in the past five games. New Jersey's recent success after a dreadful 4-9-2 month of December revived the team's playoff hopes.

In contrast, the Kings (22-21-4) have lost four games in a row, including a 3-2 defeat to the Rangers in New York on Monday. The four-game losing streak is Los Angeles' longest this season following a pair of earlier three-game skids.

The Islanders look to make it three straight wins when they take on the Kings at 7 p.m. at Barclays Center. 

According to STATS: 

• The Kings lost to the Sharks, 3-2, in Los Angeles on Wednesday, as they wrapped up a seven-game homestand, going 3-4-0. L.A. now hits the road for nine of their next 10 games, with the lone home game on February 1 against Colorado.
• The Islanders beat the Stars, 3-0, in Brooklyn on Thursday, picking up a win in Doug Weight's debut as the team's head coach. It was also their second consecutive shutout, the first time they've posted back-to-back shutouts since November 8 and 11, 2014.

NEW YORK -- The New York Islanders and Los Angeles Kings are in pivotal portions of their schedule.

The Islanders are in the midst of playing six straight at home while the Kings are starting a five-game road trip.

The Knicks head to California to take on the Kings at 10:30 p.m. ET. on Friday night.

According to STATS...

• The Knicks defeated the Kings 106-98 in New York on December 4. Sacramento shot just 32.3 percent from the field in that loss. With that win, New York snapped its four-game losing streak in this series.
• The Knicks lost to Cleveland 126-94 on Wednesday, in the process snapping their 10-game streak scoring 100 or more points. The defeat dropped them to 1-5 on the season when they are held below 100 points.

Keith Schlosser, SNY.TV Twitter | Archive

Kristaps Porzingis didn't bounce back in the way the New York Knicks hoped he would have following a 2-of-12 shooting performance against the Minnesota Timberwolves, but he still managed to help the Knicks get a 106-98 win over the Sacramento Kings.

Porzingis shot 6-for-18 from the field and wasn't alone in his struggles, but simply couldn't get anything to fall no matter how often New York looked at him. (Granted, some overzealous foul calls against the Knicks prevented them from getting into a flow.) Despite Porzingis' off night, his teammates -- notably Derrick Rose, Carmelo Anthony and Brandon Jennings -- picked him up at different points. As Porzingis struggled, head coach Jeff Hornacek kept him on the floor, and it was easy to see why.

The Brooklyn Nets' losing streak reached seven games as the Sacramento Kings outscored them 34-18 in the third quarter of a 122-105 loss on Sunday at Barclays Center.

The Islanders look to make it two wins in a row when they take on the Kings in Los Angeles at 10 p.m. ET on Wednesday. 

According to STATS...

• New York beat Anaheim, 3-2, in a marathon shootout (14 rounds) last night at Honda Center, snapping its four-game losing streak with the win. The Islanders are 3-3-4 in one-goal games this season.
• The Kings beat the Ducks, 3-2, at Honda Center on Sunday night, and have now won three straight games while allowing exactly two goals in each victory. Los Angeles is 10-1-0 when netting at least three goals this season (0-8-1 in all other games).

LOS ANGELES -- The New York Islanders bring a surprising surge of momentum into a Wednesday game against the red-hot Los Angeles Kings.

New York (6-8-4) broke a four-game losing streak by winning a franchise-record, 14-round shootout and emerging with a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday. The road victory was the first of the season for the Islanders, who are 1-4-1 overall away from Barclays Center during an early-season schedule heavily weighted toward home contests.

First Period

• 3:38 NJD John Moore; Assists: Reid Boucher, Devante Smith-Pelly

The Devils take on the Kings in Los Angeles on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET. 

According to STATS...

• The Devils fell to the Ducks, 3-2, in Anaheim on Thursday, snapping a five-game winning streak. In all five games, the Devils allowed two or fewer goals. That was their longest winning streak since a five-game run in February 2013.
• The Kings beat the Oilers, 4-2, in LA on Thursday, snapping a four-game losing streak. They've been a very streaky team, as they've already racked up three separate streaks of at least three losses, and two separate streaks of at least three wins. They're now 8-1-0 when scoring at least three goals, and 0-8-1 when scoring two or fewer.

Playing without Carmelo Anthony, the New York Knicks lost to the Sacramento Kings, 88-80, on Sunday.

Tanner Pearson's goal with 1:50 left in overtime powered the Los Angeles Kings to a 5-4 win over the New York Rangers on Friday night.

Anze Kopitar recorded a hat trick, and Marian Gaborik added a goal for Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles, which has won three of its last five.

Peter Budaj made 24 saves in his season debut start. Budaj, who spent the season with the Kings' AHL farm team in Ontario, California, last played in the NHL on May 17, 2014, when he replaced injured Montreal Canadiens starting goaltender Carey Price in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final. Budaj allowed three goals on eight shots in that one, a 7-2 Rangers win.

Like many other teams, this will be the Kings final trip to Nassau Coliseum. The Islanders and Kings have not seen one another since November, when the Islanders beat LA 2-1 in the shootout. New York has been victorious in three of their last five contests against the defending Stanley Cup Champions.

The Kings will be playing desperate hockey tonight. They enter the game on a two-game winning streak and are fighting to make the postseason out west. The Isles will need to match that as they fight for seeding in the east.

?It was definitely not the level of character and integrity this group has been showing in recent weeks,?? Fisher said. ?That was the most disappointing part. It?s not necessarily losing the game but just the way as a group, we couldn?t find a way to compete.??

None of the Knicks starters hit double figures and they trailed the Kings by as many as 44 points late in the third period. Fisher said this energy was similar to what he saw from them in practice on Monday - which isn't exactly a good thing.

Of course, Carmelo Anthony, Tim Hardaway Jr., Pablo Prigioni, and Jose Calderon are among those currently under contract for next season. Langston Galloway is owed a partial guarantee. Other options include Lance Thomas and Travis Wear.

In Wear's case, the forward turned heads following Summer League and training camp, impressing just enough, not only to sneak onto the opening night roster, but also earn his full guaranteed salary after managing to stick around past January.

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at

Staple Center -- Los Angeles, CA

TV: MSG Plus Radio: WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9 FM

Need to know: Mirza Teletovic hit a 3-pointer with less than a minute remaining to give the Nets a 97-95 lead. Sergey Karasev blocked a shot by Ben McLemore as time expired to ensure the win.

The Least You Should Know

[sny-box]Paul Pierce only played 1:13, as he re-aggravated that troublesome right shoulder stinger injury and his night ended early. He made his only shot attempt.

A win would tie the Nets' season-high of seven consecutive home wins, and they're looking to earn a season-split with the Kings, after Brooklyn lost in Sacramento 107-86 back on November 13. However, the Nets are a different team today than they were in that previous matchup, and a recent trade with these Kings is a factor in that.

In that blowout loss in Sacramento early in the season, Marcus Thornton scored a game-high 24 points off the bench for the Kings. The young shooting guard has had a roller-coaster season of highs and lows, leading to a trade to the Nets a few weeks ago. In his short time in Brooklyn, the Nets have seen him catch fire and go ice cold.

New Jersey Devils at Washington Capitals - 7:00 pm

Verizon Center - Washington, D.C.

TV:?MSG ?Radio:?WFAN 101.9 fm, 660 am

New Jersey Devils at New York Rangers - 7:30 pm

Madison Square Garden - New York, New York

TV (Devils Broadcast):?MSG+ ?Radio:?WFAN 101.9 fm, 660 am

New Jersey Devils at San Jose Sharks - 10:30 pm

"The Shark Tank" at the SAP Center - San Jose, California

TV:?MSG+ ?Radio:?WFAN 101.9 fm, 660 am

New Jersey Devils at Los Angeles Kings - 10:30 pm

Staples Center - Los Angeles, California

TV:?MSG+ ?Radio:?WFAN 101.9 fm, 660 am

New Jersey Devils vs Los Angeles Kings, 7 pm

Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey

TV:?MSG+ ?Radio:?WFAN 101.9 fm, 660 am

Just hours away from the New Jersey Devils playing the Los Angeles Kings in the Prudential Center, mixed feelings are abound.

The Kings and Devils squared off in the 2012 Stanley Cup Finals, with the Kings winning the series and the Stanley Cup 4-2.? As a fan, it?s hard to still not be disappointed with the outcome.

On April 24...

2003- Martin Brodeur records a playoff shutout, and Jamie Langenbrunner registers a goal and an assist in New Jersey's win over the Tampa Bay Lighting in game one of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

With the trade deadline set for 3 p.m. ET on Wednesday, April 3, considering this post your one-stop shopping for all trades, deals and machinations. We'll update all league-wide deals (with the exception of minor-league trades) here and keep you guys updated with every deal. Let's start off with a couple of fun ones from the Lonestar State.

First, there was this:

The Skinny: Each Nets? starter scored two of the team?s first 10 points, with Brooklyn showing great ball movement. The Kings kept it close, led by three three-pointers and 13 first quarter points by John Salmons. The Nets set a new season-high with 36 points on 71 percent shooting in the first quarter and led by five after one.

The Nets? second unit looked like the ?Bench Mob? of old to start the second quarter, as Brooklyn opened a 16-point lead. As part of a 15-2 Nets? run, Mirza Teletovic scored 10 points in his first five minutes of action, including hitting two three-pointers and blocking a shot. MarShon Brooks added eight points in the quarter. The Nets closed out the first half with an 18-point lead and set another new season-high with 65 points at the break. They also set a new high mark by shooting 67.5 percent from the field, which is the highest shooting percentage of any Eastern Conference team in a first half this season.

This is the second game of a four-game stretch against teams under .500. However, last night against the Wizards, the Nets needed double overtime to come away with the victory.

The Nets beat the Kings in Sacramento, 99-90, earlier this season.

The Skinny: The Kings began the game by flooding the paint for points, with a few acrobatic shots from point guard Aaron Brooks. Sacramento went on a 10-0 run to take an early lead. Brook Lopez scored six of the Nets? first eight points, but it took him seven shots to get there. Brooklyn only managed eight points in the game?s first eight minutes but gained a one-point lead on a 13-4 run to close out the quarter, as Deron Williams consistently found Andray Blatche in the paint. Williams had six assists in the first but hurt his elbow after hitting the deck on a pass under the basket.

Blatche scored 12 straight Nets? points spanning the first two quarters. Both teams picked up the offensive pace in the second quarter and began trading buckets. C.J. Watson hit three three-pointers in the first half, and Blatche hit his first nine shots from the field, which helped the Nets establish a 12-point lead at the break. Williams returned late in the second quarter and appeared fine after icing the elbow. The Nets? starters completely took over the game as the first half concluded.