Westbrook, Adams star for OKC in NBA

Russell Westbrook and New Zealand centre Steven Adams have played starring roles in the Thunder's NBA win, before James Harden helped the Rockets also win.

Russell Westbrook

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook during the Thunder's win over the Raptors (AAP)

Russell Westbrook capped his 23rd triple-double of 37 points, 14 assists and 13 rebounds by hitting the tiebreaking layup with 39.7 seconds remaining in Thunder's NBA game.

It helped Oklahoma City snap the Toronto Raptors' team-record 11-game winning streak with a hotly contested 132-125 victory on Sunday afternoon at Air Canada Centre.

Westbrook posted his 102nd career triple-double and fifth successive triple-double. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, he and Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson are the only players with three instances of five straight games with a triple-double.

In a game that featured 25 lead changes and 20 ties, Westbrook snapped a 125-125 deadlock and then added a 16-foot pull-up with 11.7 seconds left.

Westbrook's final points occurred after DeMar DeRozan missed a layup with 30 seconds left on a play when the Toronto guard thought he was fouled by Corey Brewer.

New Zealand centre Steven Adams scored 25 points and collected eight rebounds for the Thunder.

Much of the focus on Adams' game though came when he took a knee to the testicles while trying to stop a drive to the hoop from former team-mate Serge Ibaka.

The third-quarter incident set social media alight, with Adams having previously taken multiple blows to the same region during his NBA career, most famously from Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green two seasons ago.

Elsewhere, James Harden buried a three-pointer inside the final minute, and the visiting Houston Rockets completed a season sweep of the Minnesota Timberwolves with a 129-120 win.

Harden, who tallied nine consecutive points for the Rockets after things grew tense, scored 34 points and had 12 assists.

In New Orleans, a shorthanded Boston Celtics were beaten 109-89 by the Pelicans.

Anthony Davis had 34 points and 11 rebounds as New Orleans overcame a slow start.

Cheick Diallo added a season-high 17 points, Nikola Mirotic had 16 points and 10 rebounds and E'Twaun Moore scored 11 for the Pelicans, who had lost four of their previous five games and dropped to eighth place in the Western Conference.

Five Celtics were sidelined by injury, including Kyrie Irving, who missed his third successive game because of left knee soreness, and Marcus Smart, who missed his third successive game because of a sprained right thumb.

In the late game, Oklahoma City Thunder snapped the Toronto Raptors' team-record 11-game winning streak with a hotly contested 132-125 victory at Air Canada Centre.

Russell Westbrook capped his 23rd triple-double of 37 points, 14 assists and 13 rebounds by hitting the tiebreaking layup with 39.7 seconds remaining before the Thunder iced the win.

He joined Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson as the only players with three instances of five straight games with a triple-double.

In a game that featured 25 lead changes, 20 ties, 49 fouls and 57 free throws DeMar DeRozan added 24 points for the Raptors.


Share

3 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world