Fantasy » pushed the Flyers to the brink of

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Rudy Gay walked off the court to a standing ovation in the final minutes, receiving high-fives from coaches and teammates on the bench -- and a hug from DeMarcus Cousins. Nobody might be more thankful than Sacramentos centre for the added help. Gay scored 26 points in his first home game since coming over in a trade from Toronto, leading the Kings past the Houston Rockets 106-91 on Sunday night. "It makes the game so much easier," Cousins said. "Its not such a heavy load on me and Isaiah (Thomas) every night, just having another go-to guy." With Gay leading the way, Sacramento outshot Houston 48.1 to 41.3 per cent and finally showed some signs of defence. Cousins collected 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Thomas had 19 points and eight assists to help Sacramento hold on to the lead for most of the final 35 minutes. Gay added five rebounds and four assists. He finished 10 for 20 from the field in a dazzling home debut for the Kings, who had lost eight of their past 10 games. "The basketball is going to be in my hands a lot," Gay said, "so Im just trying to keep everybody comfortable and keep everybody happy." James Harden sprained his left ankle early in the third quarter and finished with 25 points, and Dwight Howard had 13 points and 10 rebounds while battling foul trouble in a disappointing end to Houstons quick three-game road trip. The Rockets lost at Portland on Thursday and won at Golden State on Friday. Rockets assistant Kelvin Sampson filled in for Kevin McHale all three games following the death of McHales mother. Guard Jeremy Lin sat out with back spasms and forward Terrence Jones had two points and five assists while playing just 15 minutes because of flu-like symptoms. Its unclear whether Harden or Lin will be able to play Wednesday against Chicago in Houston. "Its very, very painful," Harden said of his ankle. "I am trying to get through this, stay positive and focus on getting back." Sacramentos newest attraction seized the opportunity. Gay, who came over in a seven-player trade from Toronto last week, had 24 points in the loss at Phoenix on Friday. He started quickly in his first game at home for Sacramento, scoring 14 points in the first quarter, including a series of scintillating drives and dunks that brought most of the announced crowd of 15,606 roaring to their feet. "It makes my job easier on offence. Thats for sure," Kings coach Michael Malone said. "Hes so skilled. Hes so talented. He makes it look so easy out there. He can score in so many ways." As Houstons mistakes piled up, Sacramento surged ahead. The Kings took advantage of 11 turnovers by the Rockets in the first half to go ahead 48-38 late in the second quarter. Houston had six turnovers in the second half. Sacramento didnt exactly play a clean game, either. The Kings finished with 16 turnovers. "We still had opportunities to win," Howard said. "But we didnt capitalize on them." Harden gave the Rockets a bigger scare when he twisted his ankle stepping on Ben McLemores foot while driving through traffic early in the third quarter. Harden lay on the hardwood for a couple minutes, but stayed in the game to make both free throws -- lifting his left foot in the air while shooting -- before limping to the locker room. Harden returned later in the quarter, and appeared slightly hampered. The Rockets also struggled to regroup, especially with Howard on the bench in foul trouble. Sampson admitted he "probably should not have put" Harden back in the game. But he was more frustrated with Houstons effort from the start. "I didnt think we were ready to play," Sampson said. "I didnt think it was a good effort. We are letting too many of these type of games slip away." NOTES: Kings G Marcus Thornton did not play in the first half. He had two points in nearly 7 minutes in the second half. ... Houston had won five of its previous six games at Sacramento. ... Rockets big man Omer Asik, who has been the subject of trade rumours, missed his sixth straight game with what the team has called a bruised right thigh. Wholesale Air Max . Minutes after the previously winless Colts got their first win, 27-13 over Tennessee, team vice chairman Bill Polian said the four-time league MVP will not play this season though he has begun throwing to teammates at the team complex. Air Max Outlet . "Im proud of him," Jones said in an interview from Sacramento, site of the UFCs weekend televised card. "I think hes listening to his body and hes doing what makes him happy and thats what life is about ultimately. http://www.chinaairmaxcheap.com/ .C. -- Gleason Fournier scored the shootout winner as the Grand Rapids Griffins defeated the Abbotsford Heat 4-3 Friday in American Hockey League action. Cheap Air Max . For the Blue Jays the time was Wednesday and the ace was R.A. Dickey. He stepped up. "I feel some responsibility as a stopper from time to time," said Dickey.NEW YORK -- Henrik Lundqvist didnt allow a bad ending to the second period wreck an otherwise good day for the New York Rangers. Lundqvist was the beneficiary of a three-goal lead that was trimmed to two when the Philadelphia Flyers got their power play to work in the closing seconds of the middle period. But the Rangers kept it together in the third, withstood a late surge, and pushed the Flyers to the brink of elimination with a 4-2 victory Sunday. "The biggest part to me was to calm down and not be too upset about it," Lundqvist said of Vinny Lecavaliers goal with 32.6 seconds left that made it 3-1. "It is really frustrating to sit here when you give up a goal like that late in the period. "It was just about letting it go and being focused on the right things going into the third." Brad Richards and Dominic Moore scored in the second to make it 3-0. Lundqvist stopped 24 shots and didnt face more than 10 in any period. The only other puck that got past him was Claude Girouxs goal with 1:29 left after the Flyers pulled goalie Steve Mason. Defenceman Marc Staal gave the Rangers the lead in the first, and Brian Boyle ended the drama with an empty-net goal with 15 seconds remaining. Moore helped seal the win when he raced up ice to negate an icing call and fed Boyle. New York leads the series 3-2 and can advance to the second round with a win Tuesday in Philadelphia. If necessary, a deciding seventh game would be back at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. The teams have alternated wins this series. "We took back the advantage, and we have to win one now," Richards said. "We put ourselves in a good position. We were in control for most of the game. They got a little sneaky there at the end." Mason wasnt nearly as sharp in his second straight start following a late-season injury. He stopped 18 shots after his 37-save effort in a 2-1 victory in Game 4 got the Flyers even. "As you go through a series, you have to keep elevating your game because the other side will," Rangers forward Martin St. Louis said. "I thought we did that, and we got rewarded." Giroux made things interesting with his first goal of the series. The Flyers went 0-2 during the season at the Garden and are 1-2 there during this series. "Were playing well," Girouux said.dddddddddddd "Its a tough building to play in. Game 6 is going to be huge. We are not looking at it like its our last game of the season. Weve come back all season long when it matters, and were going to stay confident." New York is 13-2 in series it has led 3-2, but the Rangers have lost 11 straight games in which they had a series lead. Philadelphia is 7-10 in Game 6 when trailing 3-2. The Rangers increased their pressure in tight on Mason, a stated objective, and created multiple scoring chances in the second even though they managed only eight shots. New York thought it grabbed a 2-0 lead 2:14 in when St. Louis poked in a loose puck in the crease, but the play had been blown dead. The Rangers took their two-goal lead on Richards second of the series and 30th career playoff score. With a crowd around Mason, Richards tucked in a backhander at the left post off assists from J.T. Miller and Carl Hagelin. Unlike in previous games in which the Flyers rallied after being down 2-0, New York pushed its edge to 3-0 later in the period with a big assist from Philadelphia defenceman Hal Gill, playing his first game of the series. Gill was unable to handle a rough pass at his blue line from defence partner Braydon Coburn. Moore swooped in to poke the puck behind him and skate in alone. Moore beat Mason for his second of the series and then leapt into the arms of Boyle, sending them both to the ice. "I tried to kick (the puck) up, and I kicked it back," Gill said. "I have to make that play, and I didnt. When youre in the playoffs, you make a little mistake and it costs you." Philadelphia took advantage on its fifth power play when Lecavalier scored his first of the series and 25th in 68 career playoff games. The Rangers had six shots on Mason in the first period, but Staal made it 1-0 with his first goal in 29 games, dating to Jan. 26 against New Jersey outdoors at Yankee Stadium. NOTES: The Rangers put the 21-year-old Miller into the lineup in place of agitator Daniel Carcillo. It was Millers career post-season debut. ... The 39-year-old Gill replaced defenceman Nick Grossmann, who injured his right knee in Game 4. Gill played in only six regular-season games. ... New York was 3 for 12 on the power play in the first two games, but is 0 for 11 since, including 0 for 3 Sunday. ' ' '