Shawn Marion’s hook shot and 21 first half points weren’t enough for the short-handed Dallas Mavericks to drub the Oklahoma City Thunder. Marion finished with a season-high 25 points in the 99-95 loss to Kevin Durant and the top-shooting Thunder in Dallas. Durant carried Oklahoma City, scoring 28 points and adding three assists in the American Airlines Center win. Scott Brooks’ Thunder improved to 24-13 on the season following Thursday night’s road win.
Dallas played without All-Star Dirk Nowitzki for the sixth straight game, but clung to a 55-51 edge at the half. Jason Terry pocketed 19 points, while Tyson Chandler and DeShawn Stevenson contributed 14 a piece for the Mavs. Chandler was a menace on the boards, racking up 18 rebounds. Marion had 12 first quarter points to lead the charge but the Thunder roared back to trim the deficit after in the second half. The Mavericks endured poor shooting in the third quarter as the Thunder took a three point lead heading into the final frame. Cold shooting Dallas scored only 40 second half points and went just 5-for-16 in the third quarter. Jeff Green scored 16 points for the visitors to go along with nine rebounds. Russell Westbrook also had nine assists in the win and shot 5-of-6 from the charity stripe. Westbrook finished with 15 points as the Thunder snapped a two game losing skid and rolled past depleted Dallas.
The Mavericks’ defense had trouble with the Thunder’s inside game during the final quarter. Jason Kidd was held without a point in 40 minutes on the hardwood. Kidd dished out seven assists and added 10 rebounds but the Thunder quickly pulled in front late in the game. Stevenson’s long trey in the final minute gave Oklahoma City a five point lead and Durant went to the line with half a minute remaining in the game. Durant banked both shots to account for the final margin and give the Thunder their first win over Rick Carlisle’s Mavs in three tries this season. Oklahoma City is just one-half a game behind Utah in the Northwest division. Dallas is also in second place, three back of the conference leading Spurs. The Mavs are just 2-4 in Nowitzki’s absence.
Parting Points: Song for Friday- “The Storm is Over Now” by R. Kelly
Showing posts with label Oklahoma City Thunder. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Oklahoma City Thunder. Show all posts
Friday, January 7, 2011
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Thunder Take T-Mac's Thunder
Kevin Durant drained a clutch three pointer at the end of regulation and notched a pull up jumper in overtime to give Oklahoma City a 121-118 victory over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Nothing rattles Durant. The Thunder won for the eighth consecutive time, a season best streak for Oklahoma City. The overtime defeat came in Tracy McGrady’s dazzling New York debut. T-Mac collected 26 points in 32 minutes, his highest total in over a year. The All-star’s effort wasn’t enough to prevent durable Durant from hanging 36 points. Upstart Oklahoma City improved to 32-21, while the Knicks dropped their record to 19-35.
David Lee scored 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the Knicks’ sixth straight loss. Newly acquired Eddie House, added a season-high 24 points for the home team. McGrady banked 10 shots in a strong first quarter to match a season high for the former Houston Rocket. T-Mac made a long jumper and a three-pointer at the end of the half for a 57-52 New York advantage. He finished with 19 first half points to match his output with Houston through six games. The electrifying McGrady ran out of steam at the end of the fourth quarter for Mike D’Antoni’s club. He missed some vital free throws as he took his fatigued body to the hardwood. New York blew a six point lead late in regulation. The Thunder outscored the Knicks 8-2 in the game’s final sixty seconds. A Jeff Green three-pointer was followed by a Russell Westbrook’s layup to cut the Thunder deficit to one point with less than thirty seconds remaining. Westbrook finished with 31 points and 10 assists. The second year guard out of UCLA got the Thunder going in the second half. He helped stage an early lead for the visitors with 10 second half points. Green made 16 points and 11 boards. House bucketed a pair of free throws to give the Knicks a three point lead in the final seconds before Durant knotted the game at 105 by netting a trey.
McGrady, sporting a number 3 jersey, didn’t start the overtime session and the Knicks earned a four point edge on Lee’s tap-in with 1:35 left. Rugged backup forward, Nick Collison, tapped in Durant’s misfire with 32 seconds left and Green fired from downtown to pull the Thunder back within one. T-Mac was summoned from the bench and set up the go-ahead jumper to House with the clock reading 30.7 seconds. Durant answered the Knicks’ challenge by drilling a 3-point shot. The All-star forward curled hard and received an inbounds pass from Westbrook to tie the game. The Thunder secured the victory and completed the rally. Durant nicked his 27th consecutive game with at least 25 points. Collison took charge by setting several screens and finished with double digit points. Former Arizona State rookie, James Harden, had 14 points for Oklahoma City. The Thunder sit third in the Northwest division but own the league’s current longest winning streak. Durant has proven he belongs in the upper echelon of the NBA elite.
Parting Points: Two Tiger notes-
(1)Johnny Damon is reportedly set to sign a $8 million deal with Detroit.
(2)Tiger Woods-could you have given a better effort? What does steroids have to do with cheating on your wife?
David Lee scored 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the Knicks’ sixth straight loss. Newly acquired Eddie House, added a season-high 24 points for the home team. McGrady banked 10 shots in a strong first quarter to match a season high for the former Houston Rocket. T-Mac made a long jumper and a three-pointer at the end of the half for a 57-52 New York advantage. He finished with 19 first half points to match his output with Houston through six games. The electrifying McGrady ran out of steam at the end of the fourth quarter for Mike D’Antoni’s club. He missed some vital free throws as he took his fatigued body to the hardwood. New York blew a six point lead late in regulation. The Thunder outscored the Knicks 8-2 in the game’s final sixty seconds. A Jeff Green three-pointer was followed by a Russell Westbrook’s layup to cut the Thunder deficit to one point with less than thirty seconds remaining. Westbrook finished with 31 points and 10 assists. The second year guard out of UCLA got the Thunder going in the second half. He helped stage an early lead for the visitors with 10 second half points. Green made 16 points and 11 boards. House bucketed a pair of free throws to give the Knicks a three point lead in the final seconds before Durant knotted the game at 105 by netting a trey.
McGrady, sporting a number 3 jersey, didn’t start the overtime session and the Knicks earned a four point edge on Lee’s tap-in with 1:35 left. Rugged backup forward, Nick Collison, tapped in Durant’s misfire with 32 seconds left and Green fired from downtown to pull the Thunder back within one. T-Mac was summoned from the bench and set up the go-ahead jumper to House with the clock reading 30.7 seconds. Durant answered the Knicks’ challenge by drilling a 3-point shot. The All-star forward curled hard and received an inbounds pass from Westbrook to tie the game. The Thunder secured the victory and completed the rally. Durant nicked his 27th consecutive game with at least 25 points. Collison took charge by setting several screens and finished with double digit points. Former Arizona State rookie, James Harden, had 14 points for Oklahoma City. The Thunder sit third in the Northwest division but own the league’s current longest winning streak. Durant has proven he belongs in the upper echelon of the NBA elite.
Parting Points: Two Tiger notes-
(1)Johnny Damon is reportedly set to sign a $8 million deal with Detroit.
(2)Tiger Woods-could you have given a better effort? What does steroids have to do with cheating on your wife?
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