No Kevin Durant and no Serge Ibaka was no problem for the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday.
The Thunder rode the contributions of Russell Westbrook, Enes Kanter and Anthony Morrow to a 122-118 win over the Boston Celtics in a matchup of two teams fighting for playoff spots in their respective conferences.
Boston got to within four in the final minute, but 10 late points from Westbrook helped salt away the game for the home team.
COWBOY COMES HOME
Oklahoma State product Marcus Smart put on quite the show in his return to the Sooner State. The rookie point guard did everything for the Celtics in the first half, scoring 14 points in the second quarter alone on 5-of-8 shooting (4-for-6 from deep).
Smart did run into foul trouble midway through the third quarter, but he still managed to turn in a career-high 25 points — thanks in large part his seven made 3-pointers. Those seven threes set a new single-game record for a Celtics rookie, according to radio play-by-play man Sean Grande. Smart also finished with nine rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks.
In fact, Smart outplayed Westbrook for much of the first 24 minutes. The Thunder guard made just three of his first 10 field-goal attempts and turned the ball over six times before halftime.
CELTICS BLUNDER
Speaking of turnovers, the Celtics struggled mightily in that department during the first half. Boston coughed the ball up 12 times before the break but took a 57-53 lead into the third quarter thanks in part to its 64.1 percent first-half shooting percentage. All 57 of those points came on field goals, as the Celtics did not attempt their first free throw until the 7:04 mark of the third.
Tyler Zeller continued his strong scoring streak for the C’s, going a perfect 6-for-6 from the floor in the first half. Zeller did not make a shot in the second half, however, and finished with 12 points.
TERMINATOR WESTBROOK ARRIVES
Remember how we said Westbrook struggled in the first half? Well, he did this midway through the third quarter:
The Celtics couldn’t expect a guy averaging a triple-double since the All-Star break to stay quiet for long. Westbrook spurred a 40-point third quarter to give the Thunder a 93-81 lead heading into the final frame. He scored 15 of those 40 points while the Celtics as a team managed just 24 on 37.5 percent shooting, including going 1-for-8 from beyond the arc.
Westbrook finished with a game-high 36 points and 10 assists for OKC. Morrow had 20 points off the bench, and Kanter scored 22 and grabbed 10 rebounds. Center Steven Adams also had a strong game for the Thunder, finishing with 14 points and 13 boards.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
Oddly enough, the Celtics actually jumped up a spot in the Eastern Conference standings following the loss. With the Miami Heat winning and the Indiana Pacers losing, the Celtics moved into the eighth seed by virtue of a tiebreaker with the Pacers.
Up next: The Celtics wrap up their brief Western Conference trip Friday by taking on the Spurs in San Antonio.
Thumbnail photo via Mark D. Smith/USA TODAY Sports Images
