Wizards thrash Oklahoma
washington — Markieff Morris scored 23 points as the Washington Wizards took advantage of an off night by Russell Westbrook to crush the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-98 on Monday.
John Wall had 15 points and 14 assists and Bradley Beal scored 22 points as all five starters scored in double figures for the Wizards, who led by as many as 34 points.
Washington has won three straight, 10 of 11 overall and are an Eastern Conference-best 17-5 since New Years Day.
“It definitely starts with him,” Beal said of shutting down Westbrook. “Containing him as much as possible, keeping him out of the paint. Make him take a lot of tough jumpers.
“That’s the game we want him to play. He wasn’t comfortable with it. We made it difficult for him and their whole offense to get going.”
Westbrook scored 17 points for the Thunder, but the NBA Most Valuable Player candidate was a long way from his triple-double form.
“I was doing what I wanted. I just missed,” said Westbrook. The point guard played just 24 minutes.
It has been quite a week for Westbrook. Less than 48 hours after an emotional matchup against former his teammate, Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant, he finished with four rebounds and four assists while shooting five of 19 from the field.
The road matchup against the Wizards pitted all-star point guards Westbrook and Wall against each other.
It didn’t garner the same amount of attention that came from Durant’s first game in Oklahoma City since spurning the Thunder for the Western Conference champion Warriors.
But the same outcome means two losses in a row for the Thunder, who fell to 31-25, shooting just 35.4 percent overall on Monday. —