Eighteen-zip
That’s really the story of Oklahoma City vs. Los Angeles tonight: early in the first quarter, the Lakers put together an 18-0 run, and the Thunder never got within double digits after that. So it didn’t matter so much that the league champions weren’t incredibly impressive overall: they didn’t have to be. Nine of ten starters were gone with six minutes left — Russell Westbrook was the last one on the floor — and the reserves mopped it up, the Lakers collecting a 101-85 win when it was all over.
L.A.’s front line was decently effective: Kobe Bryant led all scorers with 26, Andrew Bynum was right behind at 25, and the nicely-healed Pau Gasol recorded 15. Still, the Lakers didn’t shoot so well, hitting 40.4 percent and only two of 14 treys.
With the exception of that first-quarter run, the Thunder played sort-of-adequate defense, blocking 15 shots and outrebounding the Lakers 51-49. But they couldn’t shoot either, managing only 37.2 percent from the floor. Twenty-three treys were tried, but only three were made; James Harden missed ten of them all by himself yet still scored 10 points. Serge Ibaka earned his first double-double, with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Kevin Durant, who sat early with foul trouble, played only 23 minutes, scoring 19.
Two more obstacles this week: the Jazz, at Salt Lake City on Tuesday, only the second time the Thunder has faced a division foe this season, and back home on Friday to meet the better-than-anyone-expected Milwaukee Bucks in front of an actual national TV audience (ESPN). Here’s hoping we get to show off a bit.
