Paul George scored 30 points and Russell Westbrook sealed his third consecutive season averaging a triple-double as the host Oklahoma City Thunder posted a 123-110 win over the Detroit Pistons on Friday.
The game was critical to both teams' playoff positioning, and it was the Thunder who came out ahead, winning for the second consecutive game and the fourth time in seven games.
The Thunder (46-33) remain in seventh place in the Western Conference, a half-game ahead of the San Antonio Spurs, who also won Friday.
The Pistons (39-40) lost for the third consecutive game and for the sixth time in their past eight. Detroit fell into a tie for seventh in the Eastern Conference with the Brooklyn Nets, just a game ahead of the ninth-place Miami Heat.
George was 4 of 7 from behind the 3-point arc.
Westbrook finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and 15 assists a game after recording the second-ever 20-20-20 game in league history. Jerami Grant also scored 19 for Oklahoma City.
The Thunder won despite a monster game from Blake Griffin, who had missed the previous three contests due to knee soreness.
Griffin finished with 45 points, making a career-high nine 3-pointers in his home state. He was 9 of 14 from behind the 3-point arc.
Griffin scored 31 of his points in the first half.
It took just four Thunder possessions for Westbrook to pick up three assists and seal his triple-double season average. Westbrook is the only player to accomplish the feat in back-to-back seasons.
Westbrook will also finish as the league's leader in assists for the third consecutive season.
In the second quarter, Westbrook was called for a flagrant foul on Zaza Pachulia after the Detroit center received a pass under the basket.
Westbrook swatted hard and connected with Pachulia's head as the latter went up for a shot. Pachulia remained on the ground for several moments.
It was not the first run-in between the two.
Last season when Pachulia was a member of the Golden State Warriors, Westbrook accused Pachulia of deliberately trying to hurt him after Pachulia fell on top of Westbrook.
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Paul George scored 45 points, including a floater with less than a second left in the second overtime, to lift the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 148-147 win over the visiting Utah Jazz on Friday night.
With Russell Westbrook having fouled out in the first overtime, George had to put the game on his shoulders and he came up big, grabbing a rebound off Joe Ingles' missed shot with 10 seconds left and keeping the ball until he drove into the lane before releasing the high floater that went cleanly through the net.
The win was the Thunder's 12th in 14 games while Utah lost for the second consecutive game.
Westbrook's NBA record streak of 11 consecutive triple-doubles came to an end officially in overtime when he was called for his sixth foul on a charge with 1:09 remaining. Westbrook finished with 43 points, 15 rebounds and 8 assists.
Though Westbrook fell short of another triple-double, he was 15 of 29 from the field and hit a season-high 6 3-pointers.
Donovan Mitchell led Utah with 38 points, going 14 of 35 from the field.
Utah led by 10 in the fourth quarter before the Thunder turned up the pressure defensively and used it to get back in the game.
Oklahoma City outscored Utah 11-0 off turnovers in the fourth quarter.
George tied it with a 3-pointer with 1:24 remaining and the teams traded baskets for the rest of regulation.
Ricky Rubio's 3-pointer gave the Jazz the lead again with 31.5 seconds remaining.
Without a timeout, the Thunder pushed the ball up the court as Westbrook dished to Jerami Grant underneath the basket for the layup as he was fouled.
Grant made the free throw to tie the score again, then blocked a shot at the other end to give Oklahoma City a chance to win in regulation but Westbrook's pull-up missed the mark and the game went to overtime.
Utah outrebounded Oklahoma City 60-43 with Rudy Gobert adding 26 points and 16 rebounds.
The win clinched the season series for the Thunder, who have won the first three meetings with the Jazz this season.
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Paul George had a 47-point triple-double, and Russell Westbrook set an NBA record for consecutive triple-doubles as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the visiting Portland Trail Blazers 120-111 on Monday night.
George's 3-pointer with 3:52 to play came on the 10th assist by Westbrook, who clinched his 10th consecutive triple-double. Westbrook finished with 21 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists.
Going into the game, Westbrook and Wilt Chamberlain were the only players in NBA history with nine consecutive triple-doubles. Chamberlain set the mark in 1968.
However, it was George who drew "MVP" chants as the game wound down, as he contributed 12 rebounds and 10 assists to go along with his point tally. George has scored 92 points over the last two games.
It was George's third career triple-double and his first since 2014. He capped off the triple-double in the final minute with a pass to Westbrook for a 3-pointer, the last of treys for Oklahoma City.
The win was the fourth consecutive and 11th in 12 games for the Thunder. It also clinched the season series for Oklahoma City, which is 3-0 with one meeting left.
The Trail Blazers took their third loss in four games.
Damian Lillard led Portland with 31 points, making 8 of 12 from the field in the second half as the Trail Blazers cut what was a 20-point deficit down to as little as five.
Oklahoma City was short-handed, playing without starting forward Jerami Grant and backup point guard Dennis Schroder. Grant missed the game after sustaining a right ankle sprain late in the Thunder's win at Houston on Saturday. Schroder missed the game due to a personal issue.
The players who took over the majority of the missing regulars' minutes had a big impact early.
Raymond Felton, playing in Schroder's role and appearing in a game for the first time since Dec. 30, scored 15 first-half points on 6-of-7 shooting. Felton had not scored more than 12 points all season. He missed all three of his second-half shots and did not score after the break.
Deonte Burton, a rookie getting added playing time off the bench with Grant out, scored a season-high 18 points. His previous best was 11 points, and he hadn't scored a point since Dec. 3.
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Paul George scored 27 points, and Russell Westbrook recorded his eighth consecutive triple-double as the host Oklahoma City Thunder overwhelmed the Memphis Grizzlies in the second half en route to a 117-95 win.
The win was the Thunder's ninth in 10 games and their fifth consecutive at home.
Memphis, playing with a short bench, had its two-game winning streak snapped.
Westbrook had 15 points, 15 assists and 13 rebounds to keep the triple-double streak alive. He clinched the triple-double with 4:30 remaining in the third quarter when he made a put-back shot.
He became just the second player in NBA history with eight consecutive triple-doubles. Wilt Chamberlain holds the NBA record with nine consecutive triple-doubles in 1968.
Memphis had just nine players dressed for the game after trading four players earlier in the day, including longtime standout Marc Gasol, who had played all of his 11 NBA seasons in Memphis before being dealt to the Toronto Raptors.
The Grizzlies also had entertained trade talks concerning Mike Conley, another Memphis staple, but Conley stayed put through the trade deadline. Conley struggled against the Thunder, though, scoring 15 points but making just 4 of 15 shots from the floor.
Jaren Jackson Jr. led the Grizzlies with 27 points.
Memphis had success early, building a nine-point lead early in the second quarter thanks to a zone defense that forced Oklahoma City to rely heavily on the outside shot.
The Thunder hit enough 3-pointers to stay in the game, briefly possessing their own nine-point lead in the second quarter before the Grizzlies took a two-point lead into the break.
Of Oklahoma City's 40 first-half shots, 28 came from behind the 3-point arc. The Thunder finished 17 of 44 on 3-point attempts, with George going 6 of 13.
The Thunder quickly took control in the third quarter, outscoring Memphis 32-19 in the period to start to put the game away.
A big part of that was the Thunder's ability to score on the inside. After struggling in the paint in the first half -- thanks in part to center Steven Adams being limited to six minutes with foul trouble -- Oklahoma City got to the rim regularly after the break.
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Paul George scored 39 points, and Russell Westbrook's triple-double streak continued as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Orlando Magic 132-122 at home Tuesday night.
The Thunder took control of the game with a 36-point third quarter, then held on late to win for the eighth time in the last nine games.
Orlando's two-game winning streak was snapped, and the Magic have lost eight of their last 11 games.
Orlando led by 12 early in the third quarter, but from there the Thunder outscored the Magic 31-13 over the final nine minutes of the quarter and led 111-97 three minutes into the fourth.
The Magic didn't go away quietly, though, cutting the lead to as little as five with less than five minutes remaining, but couldn't get any closer.
Westbrook finished with 16 points, 15 rebounds and 16 assists, clinching his seventh consecutive triple-double by the end of the third quarter.
It's the third such streak in Westbrook's career. Only Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan have had at least seven consecutive triple-doubles.
Robertson holds the NBA record with nine consecutive triple-doubles.
It was the sixth time in the last seven games that George has scored 36 or more points. Oklahoma City had seven players score in double figures for the second time this season.
Backup point guard Dennis Schroder had 20 points while Jerami Grant had 19 points and 11 rebounds.
The Thunder shot 50 percent (46 of 92) from the floor and hit 13 3-pointers, including six from George.
Terrence Ross had 26 points off the bench to lead Orlando while Evan Fournier added 25. Aaron Gordon had 18 points and 10 assists.
Before the game, the Magic announced rookie center Mohamed Bamba would miss significant time with a stress fracture in his left tibia. Bamba will not undergo surgery as the team hopes he'll respond to rest, treatment and rehabilitation.
Bamba did not travel with the team to Oklahoma City and missed his second consecutive game. He's averaging 6.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.36 blocks, fourth in the NBA among rookies.
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Paul George scored 36 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 118-112 home win over the visiting Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday.
The Thunder led by as many as 19 in the second half but the Bucks cut the lead to seven with nine consecutive points -- all on 3-pointers -- late in the third quarter before briefly cutting the lead to six.
But then George, who scored 21 points in the first half, sank a 3-pointer in the final minute to help cool off Milwaukee's run. Dennis Schroder followed with another long 3-pointer to give the Thunder a double-digit lead going into the fourth.
George hit a season-high eight 3-pointers as Oklahoma City hit 16 from behind the arc.
The Thunder have won five consecutive games, sweeping their three-game homestand that also included wins over New Orleans and Portland.
Russell Westbrook had a triple-double in all three games of the homestand, finishing with 13 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. Six Thunder players scored in double figures.
Oklahoma City was just 14 of 25 from the free-throw line.
The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for Milwaukee, which was playing the first of five consecutive games away from home.
Oklahoma City's Steven Adams was knocked out of the game with a right ankle sprain near the end of the first quarter. Adams went to the locker room but returned with just less than three minutes remaining before half.
After halftime, with Oklahoma City's defense struggling as Milwaukee adjusted, Adams helped keep the Thunder ahead, scoring 10 points in the first four-plus minutes of the third quarter.
The Thunder made life miserable for Giannis Antetokounmpo early, as the All-Star missed all six of his first-half field goals, scoring just three points before intermission, all at the free-throw line.
But Antetokounmpo scored 24 second-half points to lead Milwaukee with 27. Khris Middleton added 22. Antetokounmpo also had 18 rebounds.
The Bucks jumped out to a big lead early, scoring the game's initial eight points over the first two-plus minutes. From there, though, the Thunder outscored Milwaukee 31-17 over the last 9:27 of the quarter to take control.
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Russell Westbrook scored 23 points and recorded his second consecutive triple-double as the host Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 122-116 on Thursday night.
Westbrook added 17 rebounds and 16 assists, sealing his league-leading 15th triple-double of the season less than two minutes into the second half. The Thunder are now 6-0 all-time when Westbrook has at least 15 points, rebounds and assists.
On Tuesday, Westbrook recorded 29 points, 14 assists and 10 boards against the Portland Trail Blazers.
The win was the Thunder's fourth in a row. The Pelicans have lost four of five.
Oklahoma City took the lead for good midway through the second quarter and then steadily built their edge through the next quarter and a half before New Orleans made its run.
By the time 3:13 had passed in the second half, the Thunder were on top by 22. But then the Pelicans started chipping away, repeatedly cutting the deficit to seven in the fourth quarter.
New Orleans trimmed the margin to five with 2:10 remaining on a Jrue Holiday 3-pointer, but the Thunder immediately answered with a Paul George 3-pointer.
George, who earlier in the day was named an All-Star starter for the third time in his career, finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Steven Adams added 20 points and 13 rebounds as the Thunder outrebounded New Orleans by 16.
George shot 6 of 10 from behind the 3-point arc, helping Oklahoma City hit 14 of 32 3-point attempts.
Holliday led the Pelicans with 22 points while Darius Miller added 21. Holliday also had 13 assists and nine rebounds.
Oklahoma City, who has scored 116 or more points in 10 consecutive games, finished with 33 assists, one off its season-high.
New Orleans was not only without Anthony Davis, who missed his third consecutive game with a finger injury, but three other regular rotation players.
Nikola Mirotic, who sustained a calf strain late in the Pelicans' Wednesday loss to Detroit, will miss at least a week. Julius Randle sat out the game with a right ankle sprain, and E'Twaun Moore missed the game for rest.
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Dennis Schroder scored all 19 of his points in the second half as the Oklahoma City Thunder picked up a come-from-behind 122-112 victory over the San Antonio Spurs at home Saturday.
The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Thunder. It was just San Antonio's second loss in its last eight games.
After trailing by nine at halftime, the Thunder took control in the third quarter, outscoring the Spurs 35-20.
Schroder scored the final seven Thunder points of the quarter to help Oklahoma City lead going into the fourth. Schroder kept up his strong play, most noticeably with his steal with just more than five minutes remaining.
Schroder jumped into a passing lane, grabbed the ball and raced upcourt, passing the ball between his legs to Russell Westbrook for a layup that put the Thunder up by 12.
The bucket was two of 18 fast-break points for Oklahoma City after halftime.
Schroder also added six assists and four steals with no turnovers.
Westbrook led the Thunder with 24 points and 10 rebounds, and Paul George finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
Westbrook was 8 of 15 from the field in the second half after going just 1 for 9 with four points before the break.
But it was Oklahoma City's bench that played the biggest role in helping the Thunder break out of their slump.
Schroder was one of three Thunder reserves with at least 13 points, and they combined for 47 of the team's 48 off the bench. Abdel Nader had 15 points and Patrick Patterson 13.
The Thunder scored 21 points off 14 San Antonio turnovers while only turning the ball over seven times.
Marco Belinelli had a season-high 24 points off the bench to lead San Antonio. DeMar DeRozan added 18, while LaMarcus Aldridge, coming off a 56-point performance in Thursday's 154-147 double-overtime win over the Thunder in San Antonio, scored 17 points.
Two nights after going 16 of 19 from behind the 3-point line, San Antonio struggled from behind the arc in the return game of the home-and-home.
The Spurs were just 10 of 31 from behind the arc.
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The scuffle between the Chicago Bulls and the Thunder on Monday led to larger repercussions for Oklahoma City on Wednesday.
The NBA announced one-game suspensions for Thunder guards Dennis Schroder and Raymond Felton in response to them leaving the bench area during the third-quarter fight that spilled into the stands.
League executive vice president of basketball operations Kiki VanDeWeghe also announced a $25,000 fine for Bulls center Robin Lopez and a $20,000 fine for Thunder forward Jerami Grant, both for escalating the altercation.
Bulls guard Kris Dunn was fined $15,000 for instigating the incident by shoving Thunder guard Russell Westbrook.
Schroder and Felton both were set to miss Oklahoma City's Wednesday night road game against the Sacramento Kings. The punishment will cost Schroder $182,353 and Felton $29,194.
Dunn, Lopez, Grant and Westbrook received technical fouls in the immediate aftermath of the melee. Lopez was ejected after a subsequent incident in which he was given a second technical foul.
Schroder, 25, is averaging 16.6 points, 4.7 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game this season. Felton, 34, has averages of 4.8 points, 1.8 assists and 1.5 rebounds.
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Paul George scored 24 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 121-96 win over the visiting Chicago Bulls on Monday night.
George scored 16 points in the final 4:47 of the second quarter as the Thunder closed the quarter on a 23-7 run to seize control of the game.
It looked like Oklahoma City had done that earlier, when a 21-3 run in the first quarter brought it from down five to up 13 before Chicago fought its way back in.
Russell Westbrook had 13 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists for his 111th career triple-double as the Thunder won for the second consecutive game. Steven Adams added 19 and Dennis Schroder 18.
George scored only one point in the second half.
Westbrook capped off the triple-double with his 10th assist with 6:33 remaining as he bounced a pass to Hamidou Diallo in the lane and Diallo finished with a reverse layup as he was fouled by Chandler Hutchison.
Westbrook also added five steals. The Thunder have forced 49 turnovers in the last two games after Chicago gave the ball up 23 times Monday.
Lauri Markkanen led the Bulls with 16 points and a season-high 15 rebounds. Bobby Portis added 16 points as well.
The Bulls were without leading scorer Zach LaVine for the second consecutive game.
Late in the third quarter, a skirmish broke out as Chicago's Cameron Payne was being called for a foul on Terrance Ferguson.
Nearby, Westbrook and Kris Dunn traded pushes, leading to an altercation between the teams that brought Bulls coach Jim Boylen over in front of the Thunder bench and led to Robin Lopez being restrained in the front row between the bench and the scorer's table after he got tangled up with Jerami Grant.
After a review, Westbrook and Grant were assessed technicals for the Thunder while Lopez and Dunn were given technicals for Chicago.
Lopez was ejected less than three minutes later after picking up another technical foul.
The Bulls, who were coming off a win over San Antonio, have yet to win back-to-back games this season.
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Paul George had yet another big game, scoring 33 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder snapped a two-game losing streak with a 110-104 win over the visiting Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday.
George has scored 30 or more points in four of his last six games and is shooting 57 percent from the floor over the last four games after going 11 of 19 from the field Saturday.
Though the Thunder led for much of the night, never trailing after the midpoint of the second quarter, the Clippers stayed in the game with strong outside shooting.
Los Angeles hit 13 3-pointers, including four by Danilo Gallinari, who led the Clippers with 28 points.
Two other Clippers -- Tobias Harris (22) and Montrezl Harrell (21) - were their other top scorers.
Oklahoma City led by 17 points after three quarters but the Clippers cut the deficit to six with a little more than a minute to go.
The Thunder grabbed control of the game on the defensive end, forcing the Clippers into a season-high 26 turnovers. The mark was also a season high for an Oklahoma City opponent. The Thunder turned those turnovers into 22 points, while the Clippers forced just 11 Oklahoma City turnovers, turning them into 10 points.
Oklahoma City also dominated in the paint, outscoring the Clippers 54-30, though the margin was even bigger until Los Angeles' closing run.
The Thunder built its 11-point first-half lead without much scoring help from star point guard Russell Westbrook.
Westbrook missed his first seven shots, not connecting from the floor until 2:07 remained in the first half. But Oklahoma City was able to build a lead thanks to the play of George.
Westbrook made a big impact in the second half, though his struggles from the floor remained. He finished with 13 points, 12 assists, nine rebounds and six steals.
Jerami Grant added 18 points for the Thunder while Steven Adams added 16.
The Clippers have lost five of their last six games after winning 10 of the previous 12 games before that.
Oklahoma City is now 3-1 on the back end of back-to-back games.
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Russell Westbrook scored 23 points, finishing one rebound short of a second consecutive triple-double, to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 124-109 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The Thunder took control with a 38-point second quarter, with Paul George scoring 13 of his 20 points to help Oklahoma City turn what was a two-point lead into a 20-point cushion by the break.
George hit three of the Thunder's seven second-quarter 3-pointers. Westbrook added 11 points in the frame, hitting two from behind the arc.
Alex Abrines hit a career-high seven 3-pointers, going 7 of 11 from the field with all of his attempts coming from behind the arc to finish with 21 points. Oklahoma City was 43.9 percent from behind the 3-point line, hitting 18 of 41 shots from distance.
Thunder backup point guard Dennis Schroder, playing his first game against the Hawks after spending his first five years in the NBA in Atlanta, had 18 points and eight assists off the bench.
The Thunder's bench scored 49 points.
Westbrook had 10 assists, coming up just shy of breaking a tie with Jason Kidd for third place in triple-doubles in a career.
John Collins and Alex Len scored 19 each to lead the Hawks while Taurean Prince added 15. Rookie point guard Trae Young, in his first NBA game in his home state, was held to nine points on 4-of-15 shooting, missing all three of his 3-point tries.
Collins added 11 rebounds.
It was Oklahoma City's 14th win in 17 games.
Earlier in the day, though, the Thunder got some bad news when it was announced that Andre Roberson, who has been out for 11 months recovering from knee surgery, had suffered a setback.
Roberson appeared close to return but after suffering a fracture in his left knee, will be out for at least an additional six weeks. The injury occurred during a non-contact workout Thursday, the same day Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan said that Roberson was progressing toward a return soon.
The Hawks have lost 12 of 14.
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Russell Westbrook narrowly missed a triple-double with 30 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, and the Oklahoma City Thunder held on down the stretch for a 109-104 victory over the visiting Charlotte Hornets on Friday night.
Westbrook hit four free throws in the final 11.2 seconds, after the Hornets got within one point on two different occasions.
Westbrook's two free throws with 11.2 made it 107-104 and were all the Thunder would need after Charlotte's Kemba Walker missed a tying 3-point attempt with three seconds left. Westbrook then tacked on two more insurance points with 2.4 seconds remaining.
The win was the Thunder's 12th in the last 14 games and came after a 28-point win at Golden State on Wednesday night. It also gave the Thunder (12-6) a season's sweep over the Hornets after they rallied from a 19-point deficit to win in Charlotte three weeks ago.
The Thunder also got 23 points from Dennis Schroder, 19 from Paul George, 13 from Steven Adams, and 11 from Jerami Grant.
Walker led the Hornets with 25 points. Jeremy Lamb scored 18, Frank Kaminsky 12, Dwayne Bacon 11, and Marvin Williams and Cody Zeller 10 each. Williams missed a 3-pointer in the final minute that could have given the Hornets the lead.
Charlotte played without Tony Parker (ribs), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (ankle) and Willy Hernangomez (ankle).
The Hornets (9-9) were looking for their first three-game winning streak of the season.
Oklahoma City led after each quarter: 33-31 after one, 62-57 at halftime, and 89-80 after three quarters. OKC's biggest lead of the game was 13 at 89-76. Charlotte actually led by nine early in the game before the Thunder took control.
The Thunder will host Denver on Saturday, while the Hornets close out a short two-game road trip on Sunday at Atlanta.
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Taking the lead once again with Russell Westbrook injured, Oklahoma City's Paul George scored 35 points as the Thunder cruised past the New York Knicks 128-103 on Wednesday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Oklahoma City won for the ninth time in 10 games.
The Thunder never trailed, leading by 15 after one quarter and never letting the Knicks get closer than 10 the rest of the way.
George scored 17 of his points in the third quarter, when Oklahoma City scored 35 points.
Knicks coach David Fizdale made changes to his starting lineup for the first time since the sixth game of the season, inserting Kevin Knox and Emmanuel Mudiay as starters for the first time this season in place of Frank Ntilikina and Damyean Dotson.
The changes didn't give Fizdale's team much of a boost, though, as Knox was just 5-of-16 from the field including 2-of-7 from behind the 3-point line.
It was the Knicks' fifth loss in six games and the third consecutive.
Oklahoma City entered the game as the worst 3-point shooting team in the NBA but hit a season-high 16 long-distance shots against the Knicks, shooting 48.5 percent from behind the arc. It was the Thunder's second-best percentage from behind the line this year.
George was 13-of-22 from the field and 5-of-11 from behind the 3-point line.
Steven Adams added 19 points while Dennis Schroder added 15 points and a season-high 12 assists.
Oklahoma City shot 53.2 percent from the floor and had 32 assists.
Tim Hardaway Jr. led the Knicks with 20 points while Enes Kanter scored 19 off the bench. The Knicks were just 7-of-26 from behind the arc.
The Knicks did take advantage of Oklahoma City's 16 turnovers, converting them into 36 points.
Westbrook missed his fifth consecutive game with a sprained left ankle. He's expected to return on the Thunder's upcoming three-game road trip.
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Paul George scored 32 points as the host Oklahoma City Thunder, playing without Russell Westbrook for the fourth consecutive game, beat the Phoenix Suns 118-101 on Monday night.
George scored 21 of his points before halftime as the Thunder built a lead as big as 28 points in the first half.
The win was far from easy, though, as the Suns cut the once-big lead down to seven with eight minutes to play.
But from there, Oklahoma City outscored Phoenix 25-15 to win for the eighth time in nine games.
Westbrook is still recovering from a sprained left ankle suffered Nov. 5.
For the first time in the five games Westbrook has missed this season -- he also missed the first two games of the year -- the Thunder scored more than 100 points.
George was 11 of 19 from the floor, making six 3-pointers.
Oklahoma City, which came into the game as the worst outside shooting team in the league, was 13 of 27 from behind the 3-point line.
Dennis Schroder, filling in for Westbrook as the starting point guard, had 20 points and nine assists.
Against rookie Deandre Ayton, Steven Adams took control of things on the interior, adding 18 points.
A day earlier, Suns coach Igor Kokoskov had talked about the importance of Ayton being aggressive early in games.
But Monday, Adams was 5 of 6 from the floor in the first quarter while Ayton missed all four of his first-quarter field goal tries as the Thunder opened up a big lead quickly, outscoring Phoenix 32-13 in the first 12 minutes.
Adams didn't play when these teams first met Oct. 28 when Ayton had 16 points and 11 rebounds.
But with Adams in there, Ayton found things much more difficult. He finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.
TJ Warren led the Suns with 21 points, while Devin Booker added 19.
Phoenix has lost four consecutive games and six consecutive games on the road.
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Paul George had 20 points and 11 rebounds as the Oklahoma City Thunder won their seventh consecutive game, beating the visiting Houston Rockets 98-80 on Thursday night.
The loss snapped a three-game winning streak by the Rockets, who were led by James Harden's 19 points. But Harden was just 7 of 19 from the floor and 4 of 12 from behind the 3-point line.
Houston's 80-point scoring effort was the lowest for an NBA team this season.
Steven Adams added 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Thunder, while Terrance Ferguson hit four 3-pointers to score 14 points.
Both teams struggled from behind the 3-point line, though. Oklahoma City was 9 of 37 (24.3 percent) from beyond the arc while Houston was 11 of 42 (26.2 percent).
The Thunder were without Russell Westbrook for the second consecutive game after Westbrook suffered a sprained ankle in Monday's win over New Orleans.
But while the Thunder looked lost at times without Westbrook during the season's first two games as the star point guard returned from offseason knee surgery, Oklahoma City used defensive intensity to find a way to win without him this time around, holding the Rockets to just 37.8 percent from the field.
George also had six steals and six assists.
Oklahoma City closed out each of the first three quarters strong.
The Thunder scored the final 10 points of the first quarter to take a 29-19 lead early, then finished the second with a 21-6 run to lead by 14 at the break.
The third was low scoring overall but Oklahoma City still outscored the Rockets 14-5 over the final seven minutes to take a 20-point lead going into the fourth.
The game was the first for Carmelo Anthony in Oklahoma City since leaving the Thunder in an offseason trade, which wound up with him being bought out and eventually signing in Houston.
He scored just two points, going 1 of 11 from the field in 20 minutes.
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Kevin Durant poured in 34 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Damian Jones had two key baskets in the final two minutes as the Golden State Warriors outlasted the Oklahoma City Thunder 111-107 on Tuesday at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Okla.
The game meant nothing to the Warriors in the big scheme of things, as they have already clinched the Pacific Division and have garnered the second seed in the Western Conference. But Durant took the game personally, as he does with every matchup with his former team, and it showed.
Russell Westbrook (44 points and 16 rebounds) and Paul George did what they could to keep the Thunder close, with the two combining for 11 points in the final three minutes.
Westbrook's layup with 13 .7 seconds to play brought Oklahoma City to within 109-107 but Draymond Green canned two free throws, and Carmelo Anthony and George missed 3-pointers within the final sequence.
Oklahoma City needed to win on Tuesday to keep it's standing in the bunched group now holding the fourth through eighth seeds in the Western Conference.
Klay Thompson added 20 points for the Warriors and Quinn Cook hit for 12 as Golden State outshot the Thunder 49 percent-38 percent. The Warriors bench outscored Oklahoma City's reserves 38-14. Stephen Curry missed his sixth straight game with a knee injury.
George added 20 points, Anthony had 12 and Corey Brewer scored 10 for the Thunder. Steven Adams grabbed 13 rebounds for Oklahoma City.
Durant poured in 24 points in the first half as Golden State led 57-47 at halftime. Thompson added 11 points over the first two quarters and the Warriors outshot Oklahoma City 54 percenr-34 percent.
Westbrook did all he could to match Durant in the first half, pouring in 18 points and taking eight rebounds while George hit for 13 points in the half.
Oklahoma City heads to Western Conference champion Houston on Saturday for its next game; Golden State stays on the road and will play at Indiana on Thursday.
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Russell Westbrook recorded 21 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for his 98th career triple-double to help the Oklahoma City Thunder cruise to a 104-94 victory over the visiting San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.
Jerami Grant scored 15 points on 5-of-5 shooting and Corey Brewer added 12 points, as the Thunder won for the fifth time in seven games. Paul George had 11 points and 10 rebounds, Alex Abrines tallied 11 points and Patrick Patterson had 10.
Davis Bertans and Rudy Gay scored 14 points apiece to lead the sinking Spurs, who lost for the eighth time in the past 10 games. LaMarcus Aldridge had 11 points on 5-of-16 shooting, and Bryn Forbes added 10 points.
The Spurs are just 14-21 on the road, clinching their first losing record in away games since the 1996-97 campaign.
Oklahoma City (39-29) swapped positions with the Spurs (37-29) in the tightly packed Western Conference, moving into fifth place while the Spurs dropped to seventh. The Minnesota Timberwolves (38-29) are in sixth.
The triple-double was Westbrook's 19th of the season, and he is two away from becoming the fourth player to reach 100. Oscar Robertson (181), Magic Johnson (138) and Jason Kidd (107) are the members of the century club.
"I'm just competing," Westbrook said in a postgame interview on ABC. "I'm thankful and blessed to the man above for the talents to play the game I love. I play each and every night and I go out and lay it on the floor every single night."
Thunder center Steven Adams departed the contest in the third quarter due to a sprained left ankle and didn't return.
The Thunder created distance with a 11-0 run in the fourth quarter to open up a 21-point lead.
Seldom-used Nick Collison, in the contest due to Adams' injury, scored five points during the burst that gave Oklahoma City a 93-72 advantage with 5:49 left. Collison scored a season-best seven points in six minutes.
The Spurs ripped off the next 11 points to trim their deficit to 10 and later moved within 97-90 on a 3-pointer by Forbes with 2:06 left. But Brewer made two free throws and Grant drained a 3-pointer to make it 102-90 as the Thunder closed it out.
Oklahoma City led by nine at halftime and held a lead by the same margin entering the final stanza.
Brewer scored 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting as the Thunder possessed a 52-43 halftime lead. Aldridge had just three first-half points on 1-of-8 shooting.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
LeBron James scored 37 points as the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, 120-112, Tuesday at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
James shot 14 of 23 from the field and added eight assists and eight rebounds. It was his 417th career 30-point game and fifth with at least 35 points this season.
JR Smith hit six 3-pointers and added 18 points as the Cavaliers shot 44.4 percent (16 of 36) from 3-point range. Cleveland made at least 15 3-pointers for the 15th time in 2017-18.
The Cavaliers won their fourth straight and received productive showings from their new acquisitions who were making their second appearance with the team.
Rodney Hood added 14 points and hit four 3-pointers, Jordan Clarkson also contributed 14, and Larry Nance Jr. contributed 13 points and nine rebounds. George Hill contributed seven points as Cleveland's four newcomers combined to score 48 points.
Paul George led the Thunder with 25 points. Carmelo Anthony, back after missing two games with a sprained right ankle, added 24.
Steven Adams contributed 22 points and 17 rebounds, and Russell Westbrook returned from missing two games with a sprained left ankle to total 21 points and 12 assists.
Oklahoma City lost for the sixth time in its past 18 games by shooting 44.4 percent from the floor and missing 24 of 35 3-point attempts.
Cleveland made 51.1 percent of its field-goal attempts.
James reached 30 points by hitting a 3-pointer as the Cavaliers opened a 78-68 lead with 7:06 remaining in the third quarter. The Thunder roared back with a 14-3 run and took a one-point lead on a free throw by Adams with 3:28 remaining.
Cleveland countered with eight straight points and held a 91-87 lead going into the fourth. The Cavs started the fourth with an 11-5 spurt and grabbed a 102-92 lead on a turnaround jumper by Jeff Green with 7:23 left.
James surpassed 35 points with a high-arching layup that made it 115-106 with 50 seconds remaining and essentially sealed the win.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
LOS ANGELES -- Russell Westbrook bagged a second consecutive triple double as the Oklahoma City Thunder staged a late rally to sink the Utah Jazz on Tuesday.
Westbrook, who had guided the Thunder to a victory over San Antonio on Sunday with his seventh triple of the season, bagged his eighth of the campaign in a 100-94 win at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The reigning NBA MVP finished with 34 points, 13 rebounds and 14 assists as OKC improved to 11-12 in the Western Conference standings.
Paul George had 21 points and New Zealand center Steven Adams 20 while Carmelo Anthony added 14 for the home side.
Donovan Mitchell led the scoring for Utah with 31 points while Joe Ingles had 16 points.
Westbrook's virtuoso performance helped dig the Thunder out of a hole after Utah raced into a 28-19 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Utah led 47-39 at half-time and jumped out to an 80-68 lead heading into the final quarter.
But with Utah seemingly poised for victory, the Thunder exploded in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Jazz 32-14 to win.
"Russell Westbrook, the MVP of the league, got going," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said.
"I thought in the third quarter he gave them a lot of energy and gave them points.
"I thought we ran out of steam a little bit just emotionally.
"We've got to be able to play through that, but I thought all in all, obviously you want to win, but there's a lot of good things that we did."
- Booker injured -
Elsewhere on Tuesday, Devin Booker's scintillating run of recent form came to an unhappy end as the Phoenix Suns prodigy was carried off the court in his team's defeat to the Toronto Raptors.
Booker, who had scored 46 points on Monday and 38 points on Saturday, was helped away at the end of the fourth quarter after bagging 19 points.
Toronto claimed a 126-113 win to improve to 15-7 as Phoenix fell to 9-17.
Kyle Lowry was the key figure for the Raptors, finishing with 20 points, 10 assists and six rebounds.
The Raptors were in control throughout, leading by 18 points heading into the fourth quarter.
Phoenix rallied to cut the lead to 10 with 8min 44sec to play, but Lowry pushed Toronto back in front by 14 with a three-pointer with just over five minutes left.
DeMar DeRozan was also influential for Toronto, bagging 20 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Serge Ibaka had 19 points, while OG Anunoby (16), C.J. Miles had (15), Jakob Poeltl (13), Fred VanVleet (13) also made double figures.
"I think it makes it a lot easier, which makes it a lot more fun," DeRozan said. "Everybody gets a chance to touch the ball, you don't necessarily have to work so hard and it's fun. ... With that, we still missed a lot of shots but it's something we're still learning."
Phoenix team officials meanwhile later said Booker appeared to have suffered an adductor strain.
"I don't know how serious, or when we'll be able to evaluate," Suns interim coach Jay Triano said.
In Tuesday's other game, the Washington Wizards (13-11) defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 106-92 after a dazzling 51-point display from Bradley Beal.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
