Field Level Media
Jan 13, 2018
Russell Westbrook totaled 25 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the Oklahoma City Thunder took control in the fourth quarter and beat the Charlotte Hornets 101-91 Saturday night at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Westbrook posted his 31st double-double of the season as Oklahoma City snapped a three-game losing streak by outscoring Charlotte 28-15 in the fourth quarter.
Paul George added 17 and eight rebounds as the Thunder won despite shooting 40.2 percent (39 of 97) from the floor and getting seven points from Carmelo Anthony, who missed 11 of 14 shots. Steven Adams posted his 12th double-double with 14 and 11 rebounds, helping the Thunder to a 57-41 edge on the boards.
Kemba Walker led the Hornets with 19 points but shot 5 of 17 and committed five turnovers. Marvin Williams added 16 points while Nicolas Batum contributed 12 as Charlotte shot 39.8 percent (33 of 83) after shooting 53 percent in a 116-103 win at Oklahoma City last month.
Charlotte held an 80-79 lead on a 15-footer by Jeremy Lamb with 10:25 remaining but the Thunder countered with a 16-4 run to take a 95-84 edge on Raymond Felton's 10-footer with 5:42 left. The Hornets never got their deficit under nine the rest of the way and Westbrook finished it off with a layup and a 16-footer.
The Thunder held a 25-13 lead when Westbrook stole the ball from Frank Kaminsky and connected with Adams on an alley-oop dunk with 3:32 remaining. Walker scored seven straight points and Charlotte ended the quarter with a 15-6 run.
Charlotte held a 59-55 lead at halftime on a 3-pointer by Marvin Williams with 15 seconds left. The Hornets went nearly five minutes between baskets, but Oklahoma City also struggled, going over three minutes between hoops until Westbrook rebounded his own miss with 3:05 left in the third.
Batum ended the drought with a 17-footer with 2:47 left to make it 69-68 Oklahoma City. The Thunder tied it at 73 on George's layup with 16 seconds remaining but Michael Carter-Williams nailed a 3-pointer just before the buzzer for a three-point lead.
-- Field Level Media