ORLANDO — Forward Kevin Durant had 21 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in just 27 minutes, leading the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 127-99 victory over the Orlando Magic on Sunday night.
The Thunder (20-20) built a 38-point lead in the first half, then coasted through the second, giving them an easier-than expected start to a five-game, Eastern Conference road trip.
Guard Russell Westbrook had 17 points and six assists in 24 minutes. Forward Serge Ibaka had 16 points, including four 3-pointers, and eight rebounds in 28 minutes. Guard Andre Roberson had 10 points. Reserve guard Dion Waiters had 16 points.
The Thunder starters were replaced late in the third quarter and never returned to the game, giving reserves the fourth-quarter. The Magic never got closer than 25 points in the fourth quarter.
The Magic (15-29) were led by guard Victor Oladipo with 23 points. Point guard Elfrid Payton had 19 points and eight assists. Center Nikola Vucevic had 16 points and seven rebounds.
Despite the 30-point-plus lead, both Westbrook and Durant were called for technical fouls in the third quarter for arguing calls by officials. Vucevic received one, too, in the same period for shoving Thunder center Steven Adams.
The Magic did open the third quarter by scoring nine consecutive points — a trio of 3-pointers by Oladipo, Channing Frye and Devyn Marble — and cut the deficit to 79-54, but the Thunder resumed their domination.
The Thunder shot an incredible 72.7 percent (32 of 44) in the first half when they roared to a record-setting, 79-45 lead. It was the most first-half points for the Thunder since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City in 2008. The 79 points also were the most ever scored by anyone against the Magic in the first half.
The Thunder missed only two shots in the second quarter when they led by as many as 38 points. The Thunder made 25 of their first 32 shots (78.1 percent) as the Magic offered little resistance.
Durant had 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists before intermission. He made seven of his eight shots. Waiters made all five of his shots for 12 points in the first half.
Vucevic had a good start with 10 points and five rebounds in the first quarter, but the Magic still trailed by 17 points after the first 12 minutes.
NOTES: The Magic activated rookie F Aaron Gordon for the first time since he fractured his left foot Nov. 15. Gordon, the No. 4 pick in the draft, averaged just 5.8 points and 3 rebounds in the 11 games he played previously this season. He went scoreless in 11:45 of game action Sunday. … Sunday was the start of a tough road stretch for the Thunder, who play seven of eight on the road. Oklahoma City has an 8-13 road record. “We’ve struggled a little on the road and we want to stop that,” Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. “We’ve had some bad starts. This is a great opportunity to turn that around.” … Thunder F Serge Ibaka remade his game this season by shooting 41.2 percent from 3-point range (56 of 136) coming into Sunday. In his five previous NBA seasons, he made a combined total of just 25 3-point baskets.