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Warriors pay a visit to Kings

Mar 13, 2012 - 2:46 PM (Sports Network) - The Golden State Warriors hope to continue a steady climb toward the .500 mark when they visit Pacific Division-rival Sacramento on Tuesday.

The Warriors have won two straight and three of four after Sunday's 97-93 triumph over the Clippers. Monta Ellis scored eight of his 21 points in a shaky fourth quarter in that one for Golden State, which held on after giving up a 21-point lead.

The Clippers rallied from 21 down in the third quarter and from 14 behind in the fourth, tying the game on Blake Griffin's dunk with around 4 1/2 minutes remaining. But they never took the lead.

"They made their run. We took their punch but we were able to make stops at the end," said Ellis. "It's great we were able to come out with the win."

Dorell Wright added 20 points for the Warriors, who improved to 17-21 on the season. David Lee scored 18 with 10 rebounds and Ekpe Udoh netted 14 points for Golden State.

"Their crowd was into it," said Warriors coach Mark Jackson, "but we were able to stop the bleeding and found a way to win the game."

On the injury front for Golden State, guard Stephen Curry is questionable with a sprained right ankle. Curry, who has been hampered by ankle problems for most of the season, sprained the ankle on Saturday and gave it a go against the Clips but managed just 10 scoreless minutes.

Sacramento, meanwhile, fell to 2-1 on a season-high nine-game homestand Sunday, losing to the Atlanta Hawks, 106-99.

DeMarcus Cousins paced the Kings with 28 points and 12 rebounds. John Salmons had 14 points off the bench, but Sacramento was unable to secure a third straight win. Jimmer Fredette and Marcus Thornton both scored 12 points for the Kings.

Both teams were careless with the ball, as Atlanta had 17 turnovers and the Kings coughed it up 16 times. The Hawks took advantage of Sacramento's mistakes, scoring 23 points of the miscues to made up for their own shortcomings.

"We just had too many mistakes," Kings head coach Keith Smart said. "It's a disappointing loss."

Sacramento, which is 10-7 as the host on the year, will also face Detroit, Boston, Minnesota, Memphis and Utah on its long residency.

The two teams have split a pair of meetings this season with each holding serve on its home floor. The Warriors have lost four of their last five in Sacramento but the Kings are just 1-7 in Tuesday games this season.