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SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The Sacramento Kings and Houston Rockets are living an NBA truth about offensive play: Most often, the smallest details --- spacing, movement, flow, pace, protecting the ball --- have the greatest effect.Right now, the Kings are taking care of the details. The Rockets, not so much.Where those two trends head in the immediate future will be determined Friday, when they face each other at the Golden 1 Center.Sacramento is riding consecutive victories for only the second time this season, both built from a rejuvenated offensive attack. The Kings 116-91 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday marked their best four-quarter output of the season.The Kings (6-9) also have scored at least 115 points in two of their past three contests, and theyve combined for 63 points in the first quarter in two games since coach David Joerger went from starting a big lineup to a smaller one.You are seeing some very positive things, he said.Among them: The Kings totaled 26 assists on 44 made shots against Oklahoma City and 26 on 36 made shots against Toronto. The combined 65 percent ratio of assists-to-baskets was Sacramentos best two-game total this season.Even if sometimes it doesnt appear so, we are getting better at the things were working on, Joerger said. Sometimes we shoot ourselves in the foot and make some, Holy Cow, did I just see that just happen plays. But I think they are fewer and far between when were playing well.Players have pointed to more space on the floor and better familiarity with each other as factors in the turnaround. They also say a better performance on defense has been important, too; the Kings held Toronto below 100 in an overtime win last Sunday and didnt yield Oklahoma Citys 100th point until late in the fourth quarter when the game was put away.When you have a group of eight guys that all know they are in the rotation, they know whatever combination is out there, Joerger said. Guys are starting to fit into what were asking them to do.The Rockets (9-6) will be asked to be much better at taking care of the ball than they did in a 115-102 home loss to the Raptors on Wednesday. The Rockets committed a season-worst 28 turnovers, 12 of them by perennial MVP candidate James Harden. Toronto capitalized by scoring 33 points off of them.If youre not ready to play, and we werent for whatever reason, its now up to the next one, coach Mike DAntonio said. Just as long as we learn from it.Harden rarely has two bad games in a row. Hes fourth in the NBA in scoring (28.7 points per game), and the leader in assists (12.5). His 29-point, 15-assist night against Toronto gave him at least 25 points and 15 assists in five games this season. Only once before this season had there been a 25-point, 15-assist game for the Rockets, according to the Houston Chronicle.The contest kicks off a five-game road trip for the Houston, the second one for them this month. Houston won three of five against Eastern Conference teams on that journey, and they are 5-4 away from home this season. All five of the opponents on the trip are from the Western Conference, but only the Golden State Warriors (13-2) were above .500 on Thanksgiving.Were still a fairly new team, Harden said. Weve gotta realize were 15 games in. Weve got a long way to go. Cheap Salomon Shoes Free Shipping .Y. - Rob Manfred was promoted Monday to Major League Baseballs chief operating officer, which may make him a candidate to succeed Bud Selig as commissioner. Wholesale Salomon Shoes Cheap . Supported by three-run homers from Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos, the young right-hander went seven strong innings in the Washington Nationals 8-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. http://www.wholesalesalomon.com/ . Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek defeated Nenad Zimonjic and Ilija Bozoljac 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (4) on the indoor hard-court at Belgrade Arena. The victory improved the Czech pairs impressive cup doubles record to 14-1. Salomon Shoes Outlet Store . Bradwell was scheduled to become a free agent Tuesday. Born and raised in Toronto, Bradwell is entering his sixth CFL season, with all six played for his hometown Argonauts. Wholesale Salomon Shoes . -- Jonathan Drouin gave Halifax the boost it needed to edge host Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. MADRID -- The Spanish league is off to a tight race atop the standings, with five teams separated by only three points. Yet, most of the talk entering the weekend is about whether Cristiano Ronaldo will end his scoring slump.Real Madrid leads the league ahead of its match at Alaves on Saturday, but not thanks to Ronaldos recent performances. The forward is enduring his worst start to a season since joining Madrid in 2009, having scored only four goals in nine matches.When youre used to scoring almost 70 goals a season, its almost like an addiction for goals, Madrid reserve forward Alvaro Morata said. For us, he is the most important player in the team and I hope that he scores lots of goals, but he is not a machine. He is a human being. Even if he comes from another planet and is different, he also has the right to miss.Ronaldo also scored five goals in two games with Portugal, against Andorra and the Faeroe Islands in World Cup qualifying, but thats no reprieve to the demanding Madrid fans.He was jeered by the crowd at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium after another disappointing performance in a 2-1 win against Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.The fans demand a lot of players, Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane said. The Bernabeu is special and we know it. Cristiano knows it and he is used to it. The important thing is to continue with our work.Ronaldo has scored only two goals in the Spanish league -- in a 5-2 win against Osasuna in September and a 6-1 rout at Real Betis two weeks ago. He also scored two goals in the Champions League, one in a 2-2 draw at Borussia Dortmund and one in a 2-1 win over Sporting Lisbon, when his freee-kick goal started a late rally.ddddddddddddOf course he wants to score more, Madrid defender Marcelo said. He is a player who helps a lot and not only with goals, also with his work on the pitch.The game against Osasuna was the first of the season for Ronaldo. He hadnt played since injuring his left knee in the final of the European Championship, which Portugal won.Ronaldo seems fit and has had plenty of scoring chances, but has not been able to capitalize on them -- including on some he usually converts. Zidane says he is not worried and that its just a matter of time before he starts finding the net again.The 31-year-old was among the Madrid players rested in the teams 7-1 win over Cultural Leonesa in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday. He is set to return to the lineup on Saturday, when Zidanes team tries to defend its Spanish league lead against promoted Alaves.Sevilla, one point behind Madrid, plays at Sporting Gijon on Saturday, while third-place Barcelona hosts last-place Granada in its 1,500th game at the Camp Nou. Contrary to Ronaldo, Barcelonas Lionel Messi is enjoying one of the best starts of his career with 14 goals in 11 matches. He has more goals than Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema combined.Fourth-place Villarreal plays at Eibar on Sunday, and fifth-place Atletico Madrid, which led the league entering the last round, hosts Malaga on Saturday.---Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/tales-azzoni. Wholesale Hoodies NFL Shirts Outlet Jerseys NFL Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '