Basketball / Casspi solid in Kings' first win

Kevin Martin registered an impressive 48 points and Omri Casspi came off the bench for to add 15 more as the Sacramento Kings sealed their first victory of the season in a 127-116 overtime win over the Memphis Grizzlies in their home opener Monday night.

After starting the season with three straight losses on the road, the Kings came through late in the game to delight a rare sellout crowd in Sacramento. It was a back-and-forth contest down the stretch, with both teams delivering big shots on a night in which little defense was played.

Casspi quickly won over his new fans by hitting his first three shots, leading a few fans to wave Israeli flags in honor of the country's first NBA player.

Beno Udrih hit a game-tying layup in the closing seconds of regulation to send the contest into overtime.

After Rudy Gay missed two free throws and Andres Nocioni blocked a driving attempt from Mike Conley, Casspi dunked in transition to put the Kings up by six.

Nocioni's 3-pointer with 48 seconds remaining gave Sacramento a 121-112 lead, sending the crowd into a frenzy as the clock wound down.

Casspi emerged from the battle with three large scratches on his arm. "At the end of the game, O.J. scratched me like this," Casspi told the Sacramento Bee newspaper, referring to the Grizzlies' O.J. Mayo. "But it's okay."

Casspi was more than okay during the game, going 6-for-9 from the field and 3-for-4 from 3-point range. The small forward also had two blocks and a steal.

"Whenever I'm out there I'm just doing my best," Casspi said after the game. "It's the beginning. One step at a time."

"I don't want to rush things. Hopefully I'm going to play like this every game. The next game I might not play the same minutes, but I'm going to be ready, whenever the coach wants me," he said of coach Paul Westphal. "I'm going to keep working hard, keep earning his trust."

"He's hungry," Westphal told the Bee of Casspi. "He brings a fierceness. I wish everybody could look in his eyes when I walk down the bench looking to put somebody in the game. He wants to play so bad."

"He's not afraid at all," Westphal added. "It was nice for him to be able to show people what he can bring when the game's tough out there."

"When he says [complimentary] things after the game, it gives me more confidence to play more," Casspi said. "I'm happy and I just have to keep working hard and get better every day."