Westbrook Powers Thunder To 3-2 Series Lead
11 May, 2016
Russell Westbrook had 35 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied in the fourth quarter to beat the San Antonio Spurs 95-91 on Tuesday night and take a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference semifinals.
Kevin Durant added 23 points as the Thunder won for the second time in San Antonio in the series. Oklahoma City can close out the series Thursday in Game 6 at home.
Westbrook sealed the victory with a three-point play with 6.3 seconds remaining, scoring after the Spurs weren’t able to foul him intentionally and he drove for a layup while being fouled.
The Thunder took a 92-90 lead with 54 seconds remaining on a pair of free throws by Durant after Spurs guard Danny Green fell into his legs when he appeared to be tripped by Steven Adams on an attempted screen.
Tony Parker missed the second of free throws to make it to 92-91. Parker also missed a 12-foot jumper.
Westbrook settled in after an erratic first half in which he committed six of the Thunder’s 13 first-half turnovers. He only had two turnovers after halftime.
Westbrook was 12 for 27 from the field in scoring a personal series high.
Besides scoring at least 28 points for the fourth time in the series, the electrifying point guard had four offensive rebounds and two steals in 39 minutes.
The aggressive defense that brought Oklahoma City back into the series after an embarrassing Game 1 loss continued Tuesday night. The Thunder bodied the Spurs on the wings and then collapsed fully when San Antonio attempted to attack the lane.
Green added 20 points, going 6 for 9 shooting on 3-pointers. LaMarcus Aldridge also had 20 points but shot just 6 for 21.
Fox Sports
Image OKC Thunder twitter
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