OKLAHOMA CITY — The Brooklyn Nets knew they couldn’t afford to let Russell Westbrook run wild in the paint. ADVERTISING OKLAHOMA CITY — The Brooklyn Nets knew they couldn’t afford to let Russell Westbrook run wild in the paint. It
OKLAHOMA CITY — The Brooklyn Nets knew they couldn’t afford to let Russell Westbrook run wild in the paint.
It didn’t matter. Westbrook had 30 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds in his fourth triple-double of the season, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rolled past the Nets 124-105 on Friday night.
It was the 41st triple-double of Westbrook’s career. He attacked relentlessly, making 13 of 21 shots while taking just one 3-pointer, even with the Nets packing the paint on defense.
“Too many paint attempts, too many rim attempts,” Brooklyn coach Kenny Atkinson said. “A bunch of them came in transition, unfortunately, where you’ve really got to try to keep him out of there. That’s easier said than done. He did a good job not settling.”
Victor Oladipo scored 26 points and Steven Adams added 15 for the Thunder, who won their second straight after a four-game losing streak. Oklahoma City shot 55.1 percent from the field and outrebounded the Nets 46-30.
Brook Lopez scored 22 points, and Bojan Bogdanovic and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson each added 13 for the Nets, who lost their third in a row. Brooklyn scored 40 points in the first quarter but never managed more than 23 in a period the rest of the way.
“They hit some shots early,” Westbrook said. “Honestly, they played harder than us to start the game, and we turned the page. We did a good job of making them take tough shots and getting out on the break and finishing.”
WARRIORS 104, CELTICS 88
BOSTON — Klay Thompson scored 28 points, Kevin Durant had 23 points and 10 rebounds against the team he spurned this summer and the Golden State Warriors scored 18 points in a row in the third quarter to pull away and beat Boston.
Stephen Curry had just 16 points — his second-fewest of the season — while sitting out much of the fourth quarter as the Warriors cruised to their sixth straight victory.
Avery Bradley had 17 points and 10 rebounds for Boston and Isaiah Thomas scored a season-low 18.
CAVALIERS 104, PISTONS 81
CLEVELAND — Kyrie Irving scored 25 points and LeBron James, returning to the lineup after sitting out a game, added 21 to help Cleveland rout Detroit.
Irving was 11 of 15 from the field with 11 assists, one short of his career high, in 29 minutes.
James, who rested Wednesday night in a loss at Indiana, made 9 of 14 shots and played only 28 minutes.
Following a slow start that saw Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue call a timeout less than 2 minutes into the game, the Cavaliers took over. Cleveland led by 11 at the end of the first quarter, and took a 56-39 lead into halftime. Cleveland built the lead to 33 points in the fourth quarter, allowing Lue to rest his starters for the entire final period. The defending NBA champions don’t play again until Wednesday night.
PELICANS 113, TRAIL BLAZERS 101
NEW ORLEANS — Anthony Davis had 38 points, nine rebounds and four blocks, Jrue Holiday added 21 points in his first action this season, and New Orleans beat Portland.
Holiday missed the first 12 games to care for his wife, retired soccer star Lauren Holiday, who had brain surgery last month only weeks after giving birth to the couple’s first child.
Terrence Jones added 15 pointsfor the Pelicans. They’ve won three of five after an 0-8 start.
Damian Lillard scored 27 points, and CJ McCollum 24 had for Portland.
GRIZZLIES 80, MAVERICKS 64
DALLAS — Chandler Parsons scored 12 points in his return to Dallas, helping Memphis beat the injury-plagued Mavericks, who flirted with franchise worsts for scoring and shooting percentage.
Parsons is still on a minutes restriction after both his seasons with the Mavericks ended in knee surgery, which played a role in him landing with Memphis on a max contract. But he didn’t need to play much to be the Grizzlies’ leading scorer in this game.
Dallas was without Dirk Nowitzki (strained Achilles) and the top three options at point guard in Deron Williams (left calf strain), J.J. Barea (torn left leg muscle) and Devin Harris (right toe sprain).
The Mavericks avoided the franchise-record low of 62 points from 1997 when Argentine rookie Nicolas Brussino made a 3-pointer with 24 seconds remaining. Dallas (2-9) matched its worst start since going 2-9 during Nowitzki’s rookie season in 1998-99.
RAPTORS 113, NUGGETS 111, OT
DENVER — DeMar DeRozan scored 30 points, including four in overtime, and Toronto held Denver.
It was the 10th time in 12 games this season that DeRozan, the NBA’s leading scorer, has reached 30 points.
Terrence Ross hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 37.6 seconds left in the extra period, putting Toronto up by two. Denver’s Emmanuel Mudiay was short with a desperation heave from halfcourt at the final buzzer.
Kyle Lowry added 18 points and 13 assists for Toronto.
Mudiay and Wilson Chandler each scored 25 points to lead the Nuggets. They have lost five of six.
HORNETS 100, HAWKS 96
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Nic Batum had 24 points and 10 rebounds, Cody Zeller matched his career high with 23 points and Charlotte rallied to snap Atlanta’s six-game winning streak.
Zeller was 9 of 10 from the field. Kemba Walker overcame a slow start and scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half for his 10th straight 20-point game. The Hornets improved to 8-3.
Paul Millsap led the Hawks with 22 points and 13 rebounds, and Kent Bazemore had 19 points. Dwight Howard had 10 points and 18 rebounds before being ejected in the fourth quarter.
SUNS 116, PACERS 96
INDIANAPOLIS — Brandon Knight scored 17 points and Phoenix beat Indiana.
Jared Dudley added 16 points for the Suns, Alan Williams had 15 points, and Devin Booker and Leandro Barbosa 13 each. The Suns improved to 4-9 with their second road victory.
Myles Turner led the Pacers with 22 points, and Jeff Teague had 21 points and seven assists.
Pacers All-Star Paul George did not play for the second time in three games. He is battling soreness in his left ankle after turning his ankle in Indiana’s overtime loss at Philadelphia on Nov. 11.
CLIPPERS 121, KINGS 115
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Blake Griffin had 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists to lead Los Angeles over Sacramento.
The Clippers (11-2) have won eight of nine and own the NBA’s best record. They led by as many as 26 points in the opening half and are unbeaten in six road games this season.
J.J. Redick made six 3-pointers and scored 22 of his 26 points in the first half for the Clippers. DeAndre Jordan had 16 points and 12 rebounds. Chris Paul added 11 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds.
Redick, who connected on his first six 3-point attempts, has made a 3 in 69 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the NBA.
DeMarcus Cousins had 38 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists for the Kings, who have lost four straight.
SPURS 116, LAKERS 107
LOS ANGELES — LaMarcus Aldridge scored 23 points, Kawhi Leonard added 23 points and 12 rebounds, and San Antonio beat Los Angeles for its fifth straight victory.
Tony Parker had 16 points and seven assists for the Spurs, who improved to 7-0 on the road this season with their sixth consecutive win over the Lakers.
Lou Williams had 24 points for the Lakers, who played without injured leading scorer D’Angelo Russell (left knee) for the first time this season.
Los Angeles still kept it close until the final minutes, when Aldridge and Leonard took turns hitting big shots before Parker buried a clinching 17-footer with 33.6 seconds left.
Pau Gasol scored 16 points in his first trip to Staples Center with the Spurs.
