Thunder Rides Huge Second Half to Easy Win

Originally Published: Feb 7, 2010 12:20 AM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

OAKLAND, California -- After staying close throughout the first half, the Oklahoma City Thunder pulled away with an explosive second half for a 104-95 victory over the Golden State Warriors.

The Thunder (29-21) went into halftime up 52-50 and the score remained close for the first few minutes of the second half. But Oklahoma City then went on a 15-4 run and never looked back. The Warriors (13-36) trailed by as many as 19 points, but went on a scoring surge at the end of the game to make the final score more respectable.

Kevin Durant led all scorers once again with 29 points, his 24th consecutive game with 25 or more points. His streak is third all-time behind Allen Iverson’s streak of 27 and Michael Jordan’s streak of 40.

Russell Westbrook also had a big night for the Thunder, nearly recording a quadruple-double. He finished with 21 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and a career-high eight steals.

As has become the norm in recent weeks, the Thunder dominated the third quarter. OKC thrived on the offensive end and forced turnovers that turned into easy baskets. The Thunder outscored Golden State 36-23 in the third quarter and never let the Warriors back into the game.

The two teams finished with very similar statistics. Both teams shot 42 percent from the floor, and OKC only out-rebounded the Warriors by one. But Golden State committed a total of 22 turnovers, and the Thunder turned those into 30 points.

Corey Maggette led the Warriors with 24 points, and Stephen Curry added 23.

The Thunder has now won five games in a row and will finish its road trip at 9 p.m. Tuesday against Portland before going into the All-Star break.