Thursday, April 18th 2013, 6:39 pm
The matchup couldn't be any juicier.
Oklahoma City and Houston will face off in the first round of the NBA playoffs, beginning Sunday night in Oklahoma City at 8:30 p.m. CST.
With two of the best offenses in the NBA going head-to-head, it's easy to expect a lot of fireworks, but the Thunder have quietly been a very good defensive team this season, ranking in the top-10 in points allowed and defensive efficiency. Houston, on the other hand, has been a terrible defensive team, ranking third-to-last in points allowed.
Of course, it would be impossible to overlook the fact James Harden's first playoff series as a team's alpha dog will be against his former team. It will be interesting to see how Harden responds, especially during games in Oklahoma City.
During the season, the two teams faced off three times, with Oklahoma City rolling to wins in two of the games, while Houston took the final game behind 46 points from Harden in thrilling, come-from-behind fashion.
Here's a statistical look at the two teams, and how they fared this season.
Season Matchups
Nov. 28 in Oklahoma City- OKC 120-98
Dec. 29 in Houston- OKC 124-94
Feb. 20 in Houston- HOU 122-119
Avg/Game Oklahoma City Houston
Points 105.7 (3rd) 106 (2nd)
Points Against 96.5 (T-9th) 102.5 (28th)
Rebounds 43.6 (6th) 43.3 (7th)
Field Goal Percentage 48.1 (2nd) 46.1 (9th)
3-Point FG Percentage 37.7 (3rd) 36.6 (8th)
3-point Makes 7.3 (14th) 10.6 (2nd)
Free Throw Percentage 82.8 (1st) 75.4 (16th)
Assists 21.4 (21st) 23.2 (6th)
Turnovers 15.3 (4th) 16.4 (1st)
Point Differential + 9.2 (1st) + 3.5 (9th)
April 18th, 2013
April 15th, 2024
April 12th, 2024
March 14th, 2024
April 28th, 2024
April 28th, 2024