Recap: Oklahoma City vs. Boston
Sports Network | November 05, 2008
Oklahoma City, OK (Sports Network) - Paul Pierce dropped a game-high 20 points and pulled down nine rebounds in a 96-83 rout of the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Ford Center.
Ray Allen had 18 points and nine boards, while Kevin Garnett scored 17 and also snagged eight rebounds for the Celtics, who have bounced back from their first loss of the season with two straight victories. Boston put the wraps on a 2-1 road trip with the win.
Kevin Durant scored a team-high 17, while Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook contributed 14 and 13 points, respectively, for Oklahoma City, which posted its first franchise win since relocating from Seattle in the offseason with Sunday's 88-85 triumph over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Thunder did not respond well in their follow up, though, as they shot a miserable 36.9 percent (31-of-84) from the floor and logged 15 turnovers.
The Thunder posted a 29-21 lead after the first quarter, but Boston jumped all over the home squad with a 15-2 run to start the second and ended with a 51-44 halftime lead.
Oklahoma City's sloppy third quarter, which featured eight turnovers and 11 points on 5-of-13 shooting, helped the Celtics extend their lead to 15, 70-55, after three quarters. The Thunder failed to get to the line in the frame.
The Thunder got back on track in the fourth offensively, but Boston proved to be too much on its end and kept the deficit in double digits throughout the quarter. The game would have ended in a larger lopsided final had it not been for Westbrook's trio of shots from the beyond the arc in the final 2:08.
Boston has won four straight and 14 of the last 20 contests against the Supersonics/Thunder franchise...Boston's Rajon Rondo had a game-high 11 assists, while Kendrick Perkins had 10 points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots.
