OKLAHOMA CITY — Marcus Smart scored a career-high 26 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a 100-85 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder Sunday at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Taking on the challenge of guarding Thunder guard Russell Westbrook, Smart was still able to shoot 9 of 14 from the field and haul in eight rebounds. Guard Isaiah Thomas scored 19 points and handed out eight assists as the Celtics improved to 5-4 on the season.
With guard Avery Bradley coming off the bench, the Celtics reserves torched Oklahoma City in the fourth quarter. They built an 11-point advantage and had control of the game midway through the quarter.
Oklahoma City brought its starters back in, but they lacked the energy to contend with the scrappy Boston squad. They got beat to loose balls, rebounds and were just out-hustled.
The Thunder never got closer than 12 points the rest of the way.
Westbrook had a game-high 27 points on 5 of 20 shooting. He shot 2 of 10 from behind the arc but was 15 of 17 from the free-throw line.
Center Steven Adams was the only other Thunder player in double figures with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
The Thunder dropped to 6-4 and 1-1 without forward Kevin Durant.
Back in the state where he played his college ball, Smart started the night like he was still playing for Oklahoma State. He shot 4 of 6 in the first quarter to knock in nine quick points. He would have hit double digits if he hadn’t missed three free throws.
But while Smart was attacking the basket, Westbrook was doing his damage from the perimeter. He attempted five 3-pointers in the first eight minutes of the game. He had been averaging only five 3-pointers a game on the season.
Oklahoma City was able to build a 10-point lead with less than a minute left in the first half. But the Celtics cut the lead down to 52-45 at halftime
The Celtics stormed all the way back in the third quarter to tie the game at 72-72. Smart continued his rampage and seemed to score at will. But it was forward Jae Crowder’s energy and defense that allowed the Celtics to storm back and only trail by two heading into the fourth quarter.
NOTES: Oklahoma City was averaging around 20 turnovers through its first four games. But in their last five games heading into Sunday’s matchup with Boston, the number dropped to 15. “That’s been a nice jump for us considering in the preseason and those first several games we had such a high turnover rate,” Thunder coach Billy Donovan said. “When we’re moving the ball and we’re not turning it over, we’ve got a very good offensive team. To their credit, we’ve done a better job the last five games.” … After missing two straight games with a calf strain, Boston G Avery Bradley was back in the Celtics’ lineup Sunday. … Thunder G Anthony Morrow got his second start of the season. “I have been around the game for a long time,” Donovan said. “And I’ve never seen anyone shoot the ball as quick as he does. It’s really a fascinating thing to even watch him shoot. Like the way he catches it and it’s out of his hands.” … Boston coach Brad Stevens was asked if his success has re-opened the college-to-NBA coaching transition: “We define ‘success’ differently,” Stevens said. … Thunder F Kevin Durant on his strained hamstring: “Feel a lot better. Feels way better, actually. You can re-injure (hamstrings) pretty easily if you try and play through it, or as we say now, ‘Be tough.’ I call that being dumb.”