Thunder rebound to sting Hornets
CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Russell Westbrook had 29 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder overcame a 19-point third-quarter deficit to beat the Charlotte Hornets 111-107 on Thursday night.
Alex Abrines had 25 points on five 3-pointers for the Thunder, who won their third straight.
Malik Monk and Kemba Walker each had 21 points to lead the Hornets, who shot 11 of 41 from 3-point range.
The Thunder made a concerted effort to slow down Walker, who came in averaging 30 points per game. Walker failed to make a field goal before the break and had just three points, although the Hornets still led 48-44 at halftime.
Walker came to life in the third with 10 straight points to help the Hornets push their lead to 19.
Westbrook led the Thunder back.
With 1:12 left, Westbrook drove and found an open Dennis Schroder with a crosscourt pass for an open 3-pointer. After a Charlotte miss, Westbrook used a screen from Steven Adams to get by Michael Kidd-Gilchrist for a layup to push the lead to 108102. Westbrook punctuated the win with a ferocious dunk with 13 seconds left off a fast break before stopping to glare at the crowd.
76ers 122, Clippers 113
PHILADELPHIA—Joel Embiid had 41 points and 13 rebounds, helping the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Los Angeles Clippers 122-113 on Thursday night.
It was Embiid’s sixth game already this season with at least 30 points and 10 rebounds.
Ben Simmons added 14 points and 11 assists, bouncing back nicely from one of his worst games as a pro. Markelle Fultz provided a spark late in the third quarter and finished with 12 points, nine rebounds and five assists while helping Philadelphia improve to 5-0 at home.
Lou Williams scored 26 points for the Clippers, and Danilo Gallinari had 25. Tobias Harris finished with 24 points.
NUGGETS 110, CAVALIERS 91
CLEVELAND—Juancho Hernangomez scored 23 points, Paul Millsap added 16 and Denver rolled past Cleveland Cavaliers 110-91 on Thursday night.
The Nuggets won their third straight to improve to 7-1. On Wednesday night in Chicago, they beat the Bulls 108-107 in overtime on Millsap’s putback with 0.1 seconds left.
Jordan Clarkson led Cleveland with 17 points. The Cavaliers dropped to 1-7. They have split two games under “acting” coach Larry Drew.