Kevin Durant scored 33 points to lead Oklahoma City to a 100-85 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday as the Thunder matched Miami for the best record in the NBA.
Russell Westbrook added 19 points, James Harden had 16 and Serge Ibaka chipped in 11 points with 13 rebounds for the Thunder, who improved to 27-7 going into this weekend’s All-Star break.
Durant, selected as a Western Conference starter for the All-Star exhibition in Orlando, Florida, on Sunday, also had six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
The Thunder seized a 46-43 halftime lead by scoring five points in less than one second before the interval.
After Westbrook made a three-pointer, Durant followed with a basket after stealing an inbounds pass from Andrew Bynum. The Thunder never surrendered the lead in the second half.
Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 24 points. Ten of them came in the first quarter and he finished a disappointing seven-of-24 from the floor.
Pau Gasol added 22 points for the Lakers with nine rebounds, and Bynum chipped in 14 points for the Lakers, who fell to 20-14 and to 6-12 on the road.
In Miami, newly minted star Jeremy Lin proved no match for the “Big Three” as the Heat handed Lin and his New York Knicks a 102-88 defeat.
Miami’s swarming defence kept Lin to his worst numbers since his breakout run began, scoring eight points on 1-of-11 shooting with three assists and eight turnovers.
Meanwhile, Chris Bosh scored 25 points, Dwyane Wade scored 22 and LeBron James added 20 for the Heat, who won their eighth straight game.
“The speed and the athleticism… credit to them,” Lin said. “Hopefully when we play them next time, it can be a different story.”
Lin has been the NBA’s biggest story this month, coming off the Knicks bench after being cut by two other clubs to put in the best performance of any NBA player in his first 10 starts since 1976.
In Atlanta, Josh Smith scored 22 points and pulled down 12 rebounds to help Atlanta snap a three-game skid with an 83-78 win over Orlando.
San Antonio beat Denver 114-99 to wrap up a nine-game road swing. The Spurs have won 12 of their past 13 heading into the All-Star break and lead the Southwest Division by three games over defending champion Dallas.
