Zach Randolph and DeMarcus Cousins didn’t get into a fight in the third quarter last night like many outlets reported. They’d also be the first ones to tell you that wasn’t even a scuffle. No, Z-Bo and Boogie are professional bruisers, with no time for frailty on the block. They’re anachronisms now, but last night they showed off some of those OG guts.
First, Boogie got pissed after fouling Marc Gasol — the third foul the Kings big man had picked up that half, which meant he’d sit. He thought about spiking the ball and almost threw his mouth piece on his way to to bench, both of which would have gotten him a technical. Instead, he kicked an empty chair, which terrified a fan sitting nearby. But he wasn’t whistled for the T, and sometimes you just gotta vent your frustration.
Randolph then hit a shot from the opposite free throw line right before the half.
That’s a miracle banker, but Z-Bo didn’t even crack a smile when Tony Allen came over to offer congratulations. Tony is the Grindfather, so he immediately realized Randolph was still pissed at their first-half performance and gave him some space while less-informed teammates continued to crowd him.
Then there was the double-elbow Z-Bo threw at Cousins in the second half. Bringing the arms around is usually the moment when some flopping can occur; defenders will sell it like there was contact with the face, but when you run the tape back, they were never touched. Not the case here:
As you can see, Randolph cracked Boogie with both elbows.
Randolph was 7-of-10 from the field for a team-high 20 points, but Boogie made him earn all of them as this fourth-quarter defense shows.
The same could be said for Boogie, who shot under 50 percent (6/13), going against Randolph and Marc Gasol.
It was Rudy Gay’s 28 points that led the way for Sac-town’s 102-90 win at home, but DMC’s 16 points, nine rebounds and dix dimes certainly helped even with the twin street fighters battling him down low.
Both of these grown men love contact — the gristle of the meat in the restricted area. It made us nostalgic for a bygone NBA, one when hand checking was the norm, bulk was a saving grace and rugged post play was the standard, rather than the exception.
[Video via Mike Sham; Vines via Jason Jones, VinnyViner, Ananth Pandian]
