Kuwait Times

Westbrook leads Thunder with 50-point triple-double

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OKLAHOMA CITY:

Russell Westbrook had 51 points and a triple-double and scored the winning points in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 113-110 overtime victory over the Phoenix Suns on Friday night. According to the Thunder, it was the first 50-point tripledoub­le since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had one in 1975. Westbrook finished with 13 rebounds and 10 assists and took a career-high 44 shots. Westbrook made a layup to put the Thunder up a point with 7.6 seconds remaining. Phoenix’s Devin Booker missed a layup and Westbrook was fouled. Westbrook scored his 50th and 51st points at the free-throw line with 3.5 seconds remaining. Booker missed a 3-pointer as time expired. Westbrook has 38 career triple-doubles. He scored 39 points in the second half and overtime. T.J. Warren had a career-high 30 points for the Suns.

ROCKETS 106, MAVERICKS 98

Trevor Ariza scored 27 points and James Harden had 26 as Houston beat Dallas with Dirk Nowitzki missing from the Mavericks’ home opener. Nowitzki didn’t play for just the second time in 19 home openers with Dallas. The 38-year-old had a stomach ailment bad enough that coach Rick Carlisle wasn’t sure he would make the trip to Houston for the Rockets’ home opener today. Harrison Barnes, playing his first home game for the Mavericks after signing a max contract in the summer, had a career-high 31 points.

WARRIORS 122, PELICANS 114

Kevin Durant scored 30 points, Klay Thompson added 28 and Golden State bounced back emphatical­ly from a surprising season-opening loss. After scoring only six points on five shot attempts in the first half, Stephen Curry asserted himself more with an array of inside and deep shots to finish with 23 points, including a momentum-swinging 8-0 run by himself in the third quarter. Durant also had 17 rebounds. Anthony Davis, who scored 50 points in New Orleans’ seasonopen­ing loss, finished with 45 points and 17 rebounds against Golden State, but the Pelicans struggled to trim their deficit below double digits for much of the final quarter. Tim Frazier scored a career-high 21 points and added 10 assists for New Orleans. Lance Stephenson and Dante Cunningham each scored 15 points.

CAVALIERS 94, RAPTORS 91

Kyrie Irving had 26 points and LeBron James scored 21, helping Cleveland hold off DeMar DeRozan and Toronto. DeRozan had 32 points for Toronto in the first of four games scheduled between last season’s Eastern Conference finalists. Cleveland beat Toronto in six games on its way to winning the franchise’s first NBA championsh­ip. Kevin Love had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Cavs. Toronto’s Jonas Valanciuna­s had his second straight double-double to open the season with 10 points and 17 rebounds, while Cleveland’s Tristan Thompson had his first of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Cleveland Detroit Indiana Milwaukee

HORNETS 97, HEAT 91

Kemba Walker scored 24 points to lead six players in double figures as Charlotte erased a 19-point deficit in the second half. Jeremy Lamb scored 16 points for the Hornets, who lost a first-round series in seven games to Miami last season - albeit a very different looking Miami. Nic Batum and Marco Belinelli each scored 12 points for Charlotte. Hassan Whiteside led Miami with 20 points and 15 rebounds. Goran Dragic scored 14 points and Dion Waiters added 13 for the Heat, who lost a home opener for the first time in nine years.

Charlotte Miami Washington Orlando

JAZZ 96, LAKERS 89

George Hill scored 23 points and Rudy Gobert had 13 points and 13 rebounds to help Utah win its home opener. The Jazz used a 16-1 run spanning halftime to take an 11point lead, but the Lakers closed the third quarter on a 22-11 run - highlighte­d by Tarik Black’s put-backs and Lou Williams’ 3-pointer to take a 65-64 lead. The Jazz trailed by four midway through the fourth quarter when Boston NY Knicks Hill’s 3-pointer sparked an 11-0 run for an 8376 lead. Utah led the rest of the way. Jazz forward Derrick Favors returned from a knee injury that kept him out for most of the preseason and the season opener. He finished with 15 points, nine rebounds and two blocks. Teammate Rodney Hood added 15. Williams led the Lakers with 17 points.

NETS 103, PACERS 94

Jeremy Lin had 21 points and just missed a triple-double in his Brooklyn home debut while Brook Lopez scored 25 as the Nets got their first victory. Lin finished with nine rebounds and nine assists, drawing some delirious cheers the way he briefly did during his run of Linsanity last time he played in New York, with the Knicks in 2012. Sean Kilpatrick hit consecutiv­e 3-pointers during the decisive fourth-quarter surge as the Nets gave new coach Kenny Atkinson his first victory, not far from where the Northport native grew up.

PISTONS 108, MAGIC 82

Andre Drummond had 12 points and 20 rebounds, helping Detroit rout Orlando in what might have been the final home opener for the Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Pistons owner Tom Gores confirmed before the game the team was close to a deal to move downtown next season. Tobias Harris scored 18 points for the Pistons, and Marcus Morris added 17. Ish Smith had 16 points and eight assists. Aaron Gordon led the Magic with 17 points. —AP

NBA Results/Standings

Cleveland 94, Toronto 91; Brooklyn 103, Indiana 94; Detroit 108, Orlando 82; Oklahoma City 113, Phoenix 110 (OT); Charlotte 97, Miami 91; Houston 106, Dallas 98; Utah 96, LA Lakers 89; Golden State 122, New Orleans 114.

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