Oklahoma City Thunder Humble Lakers in NBA Game One
Russell Westbrook scored a game-high 27 points and Kevin Durant had 25 points as Oklahoma City embarrassed the Los Angeles Lakers 119-90 in their NBA Western Conference second-round playoff series opener.
"We are a good team, especially at home," Westbrook said. "I just tried to come out aggressively and get some good legs under me."
The well-rested Thunder led by as many as 35 points thanks to 53 percent shooting from the floor and superb performances from starters Westbrook, Durant and reserve guard James Harden, who finished with 17 points.
Westbrook added nine assists and seven rebounds, while Durant grabbed eight boards for the Thunder who scored the most points of any team in the postseason.
Andrew Bynum finished with 20 points and 14 rebounds, and Kobe Bryant had 20 points for the Lakers who looked tired on Monday as it took seven games and a series of struggles for them to eliminate the Denver Nuggets on Saturday.
Game two is scheduled for Wednesday at Oklahoma City.
Westbrook said he expects the Lakers to come out in game two with a chip on their shoulder.
"Game two should be a little more physical," he said.
Oklahoma City led by 15 points at the half and outscored the Lakers 39-24 in the third quarter in front of a crowd of 18,203 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
"We did a good job of taking care of the basketball," said Thunder coach Scott Brooks. "We held each other accountable on defense."
Brooks said the key was stopping Laker stars Bynum and Bryant.
"Kobe Bryant is one of the best players ever to play this game and we did a good job of making him take tough shots," Brooks said. "We also did a good job of not giving Bynum any easy shots."
The Thunder knocked the Dallas Mavericks out of the playoffs with four straight wins, completing the first series sweep of the defending champions in the first round since the Miami Heat were dismissed in 2007.
Oklahoma City and Los Angeles are familiar with each other, having played three times during the regular season, including as recently as April 22 when Metta World Peace was suspended for seven games after his elbow to the head of Harden.
Oklahoma City won the first two regular season contests against Los Angeles by 15 points and nine before Los Angeles rebounded to win the final meeting at the Staples Center in double-overtime.
World Peace was booed loudly during the pre-game introductions Monday and wasn't a factor in the game, shooting four-of-10 and grabbing just two rebounds.
Asked about the booing on Monday, World Peace said, "Right now it is just about basketball."
Source: Agence France Presse
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