OKLAHOMA CITY — Forward Kevin Durant scored 28 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 114-98 victory over the Washington Wizards Monday at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Durant shot 9 of 18 to go with nine rebounds and four assists. Forward Serge Ibaka added 19 points and 10 rebounds, and center Enes Kanter came off the bench to score 14 points.
Guard Russell Westbrook collected his seventh triple-double of the season with 17 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. He is now two triple-doubles behind league leader Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors this season as the Thunder improved to 37-13.
Center Marcin Gortat paced Washington with 17 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Guard John Wall added 17 points and eight assists, and guard Bradley Beal came off the bench to score 18 points as the Wizards dropped to 21-25.
After leading by as many as 18 points, the Thunder held a 106-96 advantage with 3:15 left in the game. Ibaka hit a jumper on the next possession to push the margin back to 12, and he came up with back-to-back blocks at the rim to keep the Wizards from getting closer.
Durant, who was visibly frustrated all night with the lack of foul calls, went to the foul line and buried a pair of free throws to give Oklahoma City a 14-point lead. That prompted both teams to empty their benches.
Led by their two all-stars, the Thunder came out firing. Durant and Westbrook were a combined 8 of 9 from the field in the first quarter. Combined with Ibaka, the trio scored 28 of the team’s 36 first-quarter points as the Thunder led by 10.
Unlike the first time the two teams met up, the Wizards had the services of both Beal and Nene, who came off the bench. But neither had much impact in the first half as the offense ran through Wall and Gortat.
Both teams shot over 50 percent from the field in the first half. However, the Thunder dominated on second-chance points 12-0, which was the difference in the first half.
Washington came on strong in the second half and was able to cut the Thunder deficit down to five midway through the third quarter. But the Thunder outscored the Wizards 18-9 the rest of the way to take a 92-76 advantage into the fourth quarter.
NOTES: Oklahoma City F Kevin Durant was named NBA Western Conference Players of the Week. His league-best average of 34.7 points for the week helped the Thunder to a 3-0 record. He ranked fourth in the conference with 11.7 rebounds, contributed 4.3 assists and averaged a conference-high 40.0 minutes. It is the 22nd time in his career Durant has earned the honor and the fourth time this season. …Washington Wizards coach Randy Wittman was not on the bench Monday due to the death of his brother, Rick, who died late Friday night in Indianapolis, the team announced. Wittman is also scheduled to miss Wednesday’s game against the Golden State Warriors before returning for Friday’s contest against the Philadelphia 76ers. … After missing one game with concussion symptoms, Thunder G Cameron Payne was back in the lineup Monday. “I feel good about where he is at right now,” Thunder coach Billy Donovan said.