Tip-Off: 9 PM CT

Location: Golden 1 Center (Sacramento, California)

Television: FSOK

Radio: WWLS 98.1FM OKC The Sports Animal

Twitter: Follow @TheThunderGuys for live-tweets during the game

The Oklahoma City Thunder stumbled a bit into the All-Star Break, winning just three of the last nine games, but they did win two of the final three. With only 23 games remaining in the season, the Thunder has some work to do in order to finish with homecourt advantage in the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs.

Tonight’s matchup is in Sacramento against the Kings, a team that has really struggled to grow this season. They are one of the league’s youngest teams, so their struggles are likely to improve over the next few seasons, but for now, it’s rough going in Sacramento. The Kings feature a starting lineup with with three rookies and two other guys who are only in their third season. While this should be an advantage for Oklahoma City, the Thunder has struggled against younger teams at time simply because of a lack of effort.

Tonight’s game could be an important one in terms of setting the tone for the rest of the season. The Thunder desperately needed the rest that the All-Star Break gave them, and hopefully they will come out at full strength and ready to play their best basketball of the season.

Projected Starters

Thunder

• PG: Russell Westbrook
• SG: Josh Huestis
• SF: Paul George
• PF: Carmelo Anthony
• C: Steven Adams

Kings

• PG: De’Aaron Fox
• SG: Bogdan Bogdanovic
• SF: Justin Jackson
• PF: JaKarr Sampson
• C: Willie Cauley-Stein

Injuries

Thunder

• Andre Roberson (ruptured left patellar tendon) is OUT.

Kings

• Harry Giles (bi-lateral knee rehab) is OUT.

Head-to-Head

• Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder is 27-8 against the Kings (16-1 at home, 11-7 on the road).
• After winning 21 of the first 24 matchups between Oklahoma City and Sacramento, the Thunder has won just six of the last 11 games with the Kings.
• The Kings have won two of the last three matchups with the Thunder in Sacramento.
• The Thunder is 1-1 against the Kings so far this season.
• The Thunder and the Kings will play again on March 12 in Oklahoma City.
• Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder has won the regular season series against the Kings eight times and tied it once.
• The Thunder won last year’s regular season series with the Kings 2-1.
• The Thunder recorded 16 steals against the Kings in Sacramento on November 7, which is tied for the most steals by the Thunder in a game all season.
• The Thunder grabbed 58 rebounds against the Kings in Oklahoma City on January 15, which is good for the 2nd-most by the Thunder in a game all season.
• The Thunder shot a season-low 37.7% from the field against the Kings in Sacramento on November 7.

Game Notes

• Oklahoma City has won two of the last three, but only three of the last nine, while Sacramento has lost three of the last four.
• Oklahoma City is 4-6 in the last 10 games, while Sacramento is 4-6.
• Oklahoma City is 13-16 on the road, while Sacramento is 8-17 at home.
• Oklahoma City is 18-17 against the Western Conference, while Sacramento is 10-25.

Be sure to check out our latest episode of Thunder Things with the Thunder Guys.

Article written by Zack Low. Follow @TheThunderGuys on Twitter and Instagram, and be sure to like us on Facebook.