BOSTON — Celtics fans can hope for Kevin Durant all they want. But Durant still plays for a very good Oklahoma City Thunder team, and that club absolutely demolished Boston in its own building Wednesday night.
The All-Star duo of Durant and Russell Westbrook jumped all over the undermanned Celtics, dominating the first three quarters before resting in the fourth in a 130-109 blowout win at TD Garden.
Durant led the way with 28 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, while Westbrook was right behind him with 24 points, five boards and five assists. OKC used a monster 42-point third quarter to put the nail in Boston’s coffin.
Isaiah Thomas was the primary source of offense for the C’s, tallying a game-high 29 points on 11 of 19 shooting. Amir Johnson racked up a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds, while Kelly Olynyk chipped in eight points in his first game since Feb. 10.
The Celtics’ loss, its second straight without injured forward Jae Crowder, drops the club to the Eastern Conference’s No. 4 seed behind the Miami Heat.
STARTING FIVE
Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley, Marcus Smart, Amir Johnson, Jared Sullinger
ONE-TWOÂ PUNCH, COUNTERPUNCH
The Thunder have two very good basketball players, and both played very well in the first quarter.
Durant got things started for OKC, racking up 12 first-quarter points and scoring the club’s first three buckets as part of an early 18-6 run. Westbrook picked things up from there, using his incredible explosiveness to rack up 11 first-quarter points.
But the Celtics managed to not get run out of the gym thanks to a balanced scoring effort bred from excellent ball movement. All five Boston starters scored in the first frame, as the C’s rattled off a 13-4 run to pull within three points by the end of the quarter.
SECOND WIND
The Thunder’s second unit provided little respite for the Celtics in the second quarter.
Enes Kanter scored seven points in the frame, and Randy Foye and Dion Waiters each connected on 3-pointers to help OKC balloon its lead to 12 points. But Thomas helped the Celtics stay in it by sparking a mini 7-0 run midway through the frame.
Yet Durant and Westbrook took over right before the half, scoring eight of the Thunder’s final 11 points to put them back up by double digits.
STORMING AHEAD
OKC went in for the kill early in the third quarter to put the game out of reach for Boston.
The Thunder scored 11 consecutive points after Sullinger’s layup to start the quarter, feasting on a string of Celtics missed shots and turnovers to surge to a 20-point lead.
Things only got worse for Boston, as Westbrook knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and Durant continued to pour it on to extend OKC’s lead to 30.
The C’s also got destroyed on the glass in what was one of their worst quarters of the season. The Thunder tallied nine offensive rebounds to Boston’s three and outscored the Celtics 42-26 in the frame.
EMPTYING THE BENCH
The lopsided score allowed head coach Brad Stevens to give his reserves some run in the fourth quarter.
Rookies Jordan Mickey, Terry Rozier and R.J. Hunter all played the majority of the final frame along with second-year guard James Young. The young guns didn’t do half bad, cutting Oklahoma City’s 30-point lead down to 21Â by night’s end.
PLAY OF THE NIGHT
Westbrook nearly knocked the rim off its hinges with this powerful first-quarter slam:
UP NEXT
The schedule doesn’t get any easier for the Celtics, who will travel to Toronto on Friday to take on the second-seeded Raptors. They’ll then head to Philadelphia on Sunday to take on the lowly 76ers. Tip-off on Friday is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET at Air Canada Centre.
Thumbnail photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
