Boston’s comeback bid falls short against Oklahoma City

THUNDER 119 CELTICS 104

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Boston Celtics can only hope their game against the Oklahoma City Thunder is a microcosm of their season: A dreadful first half and a gutsy second half.

Either way, they’d like the final result to be better.

Russell Westbrook scored 31 points, Kevin Durant added 28 and the Thunder withstood a late Boston rally before beating the Celtics 119104 on Wednesday night for their 11th straight win at home.

It was the fifth straight loss for Boston, which hits the all-star break a disappointing 14-16.

“We’ve got to come together as a group and understand we still have a shot at this,” said Paul Pierce, who tied Kevin Garnett for the team lead with 23 points.

“We have tremendous depth when people are healthy. We know we can play when we’re right. We know what we can do when we’re right.”

Garnett also had 13 rebounds after missing the previous two games for personal reasons, but the Celtics were still without point guard Rajon Rondo as he served the second game of a two-game suspension and three other regulars due to injuries.

Rondo was selected to the Eastern Conference all-star team earlier Wednesday night to replace injured Atlanta guard Joe Johnson.

“I know Rajon Rondo was out and I know that was probably not easy for [coach]doc [Rivers], but we played against a very good team that plays with such pride and such toughness that it was a good win for us,” said Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks.

Boston trailed by as many as 27 in the third quarter before rallying to get within 108-102 after Pierce’s free throw with 3:31 left.

Durant banked in a pair of jumpers and hit two free throws during an 11-2 run to close the game for Oklahoma City, tied with Miami for the league’s best record at 26-7.

“We knew this team was going to keep fighting us,” Durant said. “Giving up is not in their character.”