NBA Game Summary - Utah at Oklahoma City
(Friday, November 30th)
Final Score: Oklahoma City 106, Utah 94
Oklahoma City, OK (Sports Network) - Russell Westbrook stuffed the stat sheet
on Friday, netting 23 points to go with 13 rebounds, eight assists and seven
steals as the Oklahoma City Thunder dropped the Utah Jazz, 106-94, at
Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Kevin Durant scored a game-high 25 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the floor
and Kevin Martin contributed 19 points for the Thunder, who polished off a 3-0
homestand and have won four straight and seven of eight overall. Serge
Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins donated 12 points apiece in the victory.
"I thought Perkins and Russell really set the tone in that first quarter,"
Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "Our enthusiasm for the game was
outstanding. That was probably the most inspired you can play as a team."
Enes Kanter scored a team-high 18 points and pulled down seven boards, while
Al Jefferson added 16 points and 11 boards for the Jazz, who had a two-game
winning streak snapped. Paul Millsap, Mo Williams and Gordon Hayward each
netted 13 points in a losing effort.
"I thought our guys showed a lot of character and continued to fight and try
to get back in the game, but Westbrook had a couple of key steals against us
and that kept us from getting back in the game," Jazz head coach Tyrone
Corbin remarked.
After a hotly contested first quarter which featured six ties and three lead
changes, the Thunder held a 22-20 advantage.
A putback slam by Kanter with 8:29 on the second-quarter clock pulled the Jazz
within 30-27, but the Thunder responded with a 10-3 burst, capped by a quick
7-footer by Durant, making it a 40-30 game with 5:20 to play before the half.
Randy Foye snapped the Oklahoma City run with a 3-pointer from the top of the
arc to cut it down to a seven-point margin, but the Thunder stayed in front
for the remainder of the half.
A layup by Martin gave Oklahoma City its largest lead of the opening 24
minutes, 50-36, and the defending Western Conference champs held a 54-42
advantage at the break.
Oklahoma City maintained a comfortable double-digit lead for the duration of
the third stanza, as a pair of free throws by Martin late in the quarter made
it an 83-65 game. Hayward ended the frame with an alley-oop slam, but the Jazz
trailed 83-67 after three quarters.
Utah opened the final 12 minutes with a furious 15-5 surge the cut the deficit
all the way down to 88-83 with 7:41 to play. The Thunder answered with a 9-2
push the widen the margin to 12 with 5:08 to go.
Oklahoma City led by double digits the rest of the way.
Game Notes
The Thunder have won nine of their past 12 versus the Jazz and have taken
six of the eight meetings at home since moving to Oklahoma City ... The
Thunder shot an efficient 52 percent from the floor, while the Jazz shot 41.3
percent from the field ... Oklahoma City won the battle in the paint,
outscoring Utah, 52-38 ... Utah turned the ball over 19 times, which led to 25
Oklahoma City points.
12/01 02:46:00 ET

|