Thunder Starting to Click, Down Bulls

Print

Published on November 16 2017 6:20 am
Last Updated on November 16 2017 6:21 am

By ESPN

Things are starting to click for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Russell Westbrook had 21 points and seven assists and the Thunder beat the Chicago Bulls 92-79 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory.

Oklahoma City had high hopes coming into the season after trading for All-Stars Carmelo Anthony and Paul George, but the Thunder had lost four straight before getting things turned around to even their record at 7-7.

"From here, we're kind of gaining some momentum," George said. "We're getting consistency from our level of play standpoint. I think we're starting to come together for the most part. Again, we're obviously not where we want to be. There's always going to be a level of improvement, but we're trending in the right direction."

Anthony returned to the lineup after missing the previous game with a sore lower back and finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Jerami Grant added 15 points and 11 rebounds.

The Thunder led 27-7 at the end of the first quarter to match the fewest points they have allowed in a quarter since the franchise moved from Seattle in 2008. The Bulls made 2 of 16 field goals in the period.

"Just setting the tone," Westbrook said. "Thought we did a good job of being aggressive, using our hands. That's how we win games."

Lauri Markkanen and Antonio Blakeney each scored 16 points for Chicago, and Denzel Valentine added 13. The Bulls shot 34.7 percent from the field.

"We fought from the second quarter on, but again, we're down 20 in the first quarter with a seven-point quarter," Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. "You're not breeding any confidence for yourselves. So it's a mindset. You've got to come out and see that thing go through the hoop. It's going to give you a little confidence. Right now, we don't have a lot, especially early in games."

The Thunder led 58-34 at halftime. Westbrook didn't score until 6:43 remained in the second quarter, but finished the half with 17 points.

"He does that to a lot of people," Hoiberg said. "He's so explosive. There's a reason he was the MVP last season."

Though the Thunder were never threatened in the second half, they had hoped to finish better. They shot 22 percent after the break.

"In the second half, we never got into a rhythm," Thunder coach Billy Donovan said. "Never played to an identity. I thought our defense, for the most part, was pretty good for the full 48. We had some lapses. But I thought offensively, that's where we got to really move the ball and make them work and find ways to break the defense down better than we did in the third and the fourth."


Pacers 116, Grizzlies 113

Darren Collison scored a season-high 30 points, and the Indiana Pacers almost let them go to waste.

After stretching their lead to 17 in the fourth quarter, the Pacers held on to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 116-113 on Wednesday night.

Indiana could breathe easy only after Marc Gasol's 3-point attempt with 3 seconds left bounced off. Memphis couldn't get off another shot from the ensuing scramble.

"I think we've just got to do a better job of executing in the last five minutes if we want to be better," said Collison, who added eight assists. "I don't know how much of it was them or more of us."

The Pacers seemed in control before Memphis ran off 10 straight points in the fourth. A 3-pointer from Bojan Bogdanovic stopped the string and ran the margin back to 10. From there Memphis chipped away, and a 3-point play from Gasol trimmed the Pacers' lead to 116-113 with 12.4 seconds left.

After that, there was drama but no scoring. An out-of-bounds call was reviewed and overturned, giving the Grizzlies the ball with 9.1 seconds left. Gasol, who led Memphis with 35 points and 13 rebounds, missed his 3-point attempt near the top of the key, and Memphis dropped its third straight.

"I actually thought it was good," Collison said of Gasol's shot. "I was preparing to go to overtime. He makes those shots, especially at the top of the key."

Victor Oladipo added 21 points for the Pacers, while Bogdanovic scored 16.

Memphis played without starting point guard Mike Conley, who has a sore left Achilles tendon. Despite shooting well at times, Memphis' offense seemed in disarray and committed fifteen turnovers.

Memphis coach David Fizdale said poor defense through three quarters put his team in a deep hole.

"The first three quarters, I just had no answers because we just weren't locked in defensively for whatever reason," Fizdale said. "Our defense is plummeting because of our lack of focus and lack of effort."


Wednesday, November 15 Scoreboard

Atlanta 126, Sacramento 80

Washington 102, Miami 93

New York 106, Utah 101

Cleveland 115, Charlotte 107

Indiana 116, Memphis 113

Milwaukee 99, Detroit 95

Minnesota 98, San Antonio 86

Toronto 126, New Orleans 116

Oklahoma City 92, Chicago 79

Portland 99, Orlando 94

Philadelphia 115, Los  Angeles Lakers 109

 

Thursday, November 16 Schedule (All Times Central)

Golden State at Boston, 7 p.m.

Houston at Phoenix, 9:30 p.m.


Friday, November 17 Schedule (All Times Central)

Detroit at Indiana, 6 p.m.

Miami at Washington, 6 p.m.

Utah at Brooklyn, 6:30 p.m.

Los Angeles Clippers at Cleveland, 6:30 p.m.

New York at Toronto, 6:30 p.m.

Charlotte at Chicago, 7 p.m.

Oklahoma City at San Antonio, 7 p.m.

Minnesota at Dallas, 7:30 p.m.

Portland at Sacramento, 9 p.m.

New Orleans at Denver, 9:30 p.m.

Phoenix at Los Angeles Lakers, 9:30 p.m.


Saturday, November 18 Schedule (All Times Central)

Los Angeles Clippers at Charlotte, 6 p.m.

Utah at Orlando, 6 p.m.

Boston at Atlanta, 6:30 p.m.

Golden State at Philadelphia, 6:30 p.m.

Houston at Memphis, 7 p.m.

Milwaukee at Dallas, 8 p.m.

Sacramento at Portland, 9 p.m.


Sunday, November 19 Schedule (All Times Central)

Washington at Toronto, 2:30 p.m.

Indiana at Miami, 4 p.m.

Golden State at Brooklyn, 5 p.m.

Detroit at Minnesota, 6 p.m.

Chicago at Phoenix, 7 p.m.

Denver at Los Angeles Lakers, 8:30 p.m.