Kings 131, Nuggets 109: DeMarcus Cousins scored 26 of his 30 points in the first half as host Sacramento improved to 4-1 for the first time since the 2001-02 season.

Cousins shot 10-for-14 from the field and garnered 11 rebounds before picking up his fifth and sixth fouls on the first two offensive possessions of the fourth quarter and fouling out. Rudy Gay shot 9-for-12 and scored 29 points and reserve forward Carl Landry scored 18 points to lead four others in double figures for the Kings, who beat the Nuggets for the second time in three days and have won four straight overall.

Randy Foye scored 19 points off the bench to lead Denver (1-3). Ty Lawson scored six of his 13 points in the one-sided fourth quarter and Wilson Chandler also scored 13 for the Nuggets, who have dropped three straight following a season-opening win against the Pistons.

The Kings sped out to a 40-19 lead after the first quarter, only to have Denver crawl back within single digits with 3:51 left in the second quarter. Sacramento ended the half with a 10-4 burst to take a 14-point lead into the break.

Denver missed six of its first seven field-goal attempts to start the second half and that gave the Kings a chance to surge back ahead by 24 points with 7:09 left in the third quarter. Cousins checked out with 5:58 remaining in the third and Sacramento still up by 22 and the Kings were able to expand the lead to 33 heading to the fourth.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The 26 first-half points scored by Cousins was a career high for a half and tied Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook for the most points scored in a half by an NBA player this season. … Lawson, SG Arron Afflalo and PF Kenneth Faried, the top three scorers for the Nuggets through the first three games, combined to shoot 5-for-16 from the floor and score 19 points … Denver is 1-3 for the third straight season