MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Russell Westbrook scored 30 points, Kevin Durant added 22 points and 11 rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder won their fourth straight with a 100-95 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night.
Westbrook hit seven of his first eight shots to lead the Thunder with 18 points at intermission. That was quite a change from the last game between the teams on Dec. 28, when the Thunder point guard missed all 13 shots from the field.
The Thunder led for the bulk of the second half, but never built the advantage to more than eight points in a game that included 13 lead changes and eight ties.
Thabo Sefolosha added 12 for Oklahoma City, hitting all four of his shots, including three outside the arc. James Harden finished with 10 points.
Marc Gasol led Memphis with 20 points and 14 rebounds, while Rudy Gay contributed 16 points, but was 7 of 21 from the field. Mike Conley had 15 points and 10 assists for the Grizzlies, who lost their third straight.
O.J. Mayo finished with 12 points for Memphis, while Dante Cunningham and Marreese Speights scored 10 apiece.
Both teams shot 50 percent in the first half, and neither was able build a significant lead. There were 11 lead changes and eight ties in the first half.
Durant, who was 4 of 11 in the half, converted six free throws in the final 34 seconds for a 54-52 Oklahoma City lead.
The teams remained close early in the second half. Neither could build their advantage to more than five points. Oklahoma City stayed close despite committing 15 turnovers through the first three quarters, leading to 18 Memphis points.
A 6-0 short burst by the Thunder built the lead to 75-67 with just over a minute left in the third period, helping Oklahoma City carry a 75-71 lead into the final quarter.
Memphis could not overtake Oklahoma City in the fourth although Quincy Pondexter's 3-pointer from the left corner with just under a minute left pulled Memphis within 95-92.
Notes: Memphis beat the Thunder in three of four regular-season games last year. But with Tuesday's loss, Memphis has already lost two games to Oklahoma City, both at home. .The Thunder were playing their second game without backup guard Eric Maynor, who was lost for the season with a torn ACL late in Saturday's game at Houston. .Memphis players and team officials wore "GB" patches in memory of Gene Bartow, president of Hoops LLC, which runs the Grizzlies and FedExForum, who died last week. The first 10,000 fans also were given "GB" pins. .At the end of the half, Kendrick Perkins and Gasol were both given technicals, and Westbrook got one earlier in the first half. .Perkins and Serge Ibaka both had blocks in the game. Each has blocked a shot in all 11 games this season.
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