Thunder’s Westbrook just keeps on going in 3-OT classic
PHILADELPHIA » Russell Westbrook said goodbye to a three-overtime thriller and trolled Joel Embiid with a smile and a wave.
“I was telling him, home,”’ Westbrook said.
Embiid irked Westbrook earlier in the game when the 76ers’ social media star waved goodbye toward the crowd once Oklahoma City center Steven Adams fouled out. Westbrook got the last laugh, and capped his triple-double, 52-minute effort with the final assist of the game, and the Thunder pulled out a 119-117 victory on Friday night.
The early contender for NBA game of the year was led by perhaps the game of Embiid’s career. Embiid scored 34 points in 49 minutes with an achy back, saved the game ‘Go in the first overtime with a block on Westbrook and trash talked Carmelo Anthony.
He waved his arms and exhorted the crowd to get louder with each chant “Trust the Process!”
“I’m not about to get in a back-and-forth with him,” Westbrook said. “I’m not of about to give him my energy.”
Westbrook had an off night from the floor (10 of 33; missed a driving dunk at the end of regulation), yet finished with 27 points, 17 rebounds and 15 assists. He even saved Andre Roberson from goat status in the third OT. Roberson failed to even look at the basket and then missed a layup in a stunning sequence to close the second OT, then earned redemption when Westbrook fed him for the winner with 10 seconds left in the game.
“Just trusting it,” said.
It’s a twist on the Sixers catchphrase popularized during Embiid’s absence over his first two seasons with injuries.
Embiid, Philly’s franchise center, grabbed his lower back when he took a hard foul on a drive to the basket in the fourth quarter. Embiid Westbrook grimaced during timeouts on the bench and trudged into position a few times.
Embiid, who said he just needed treatment, brushed off Westbrook’s wave and took a shot at the Thunder guard’s stats.
“They did a lot of things. But, I mean, the dude shot 10 for 33. I wish I would had shot 33 times. I guess we would have had a better chance of actually winning the game,” Embiid said “But he told me to go home. This is my home. I ain’t going nowhere.”
Embiid sucked it up and carried the Sixers in the fourth and the first overtime. His feed to a charging Ben Simmons on the baseline for a two-handed dunk tied the score at 94-all with 53 seconds left in the quarter. The Sixers closed the fourth on an 11-0 run.
Embiid scored the first bucket of OT and the Sixers led for the first time in the game. The Sixers’ fivepoint lead with 1:20 left in overtime was wiped out on Paul George’s 3-pointer and a Westbrook bucket that made it 102-all. The Sixers blew their final possession on an ill-conceived 3 for Dario Saric.