Russell Does It Again, Thunder Outlast Celtics in Boston
Dec 23, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) controls the ball as Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley (0) defends during the second half at TD Garden. Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Somehow, someway, the OKC Thunder were able to beat the Boston Celtics 117-112 to move to 18-12 on the season.
I just dont get it. I don’t get how he does it, night in and night out. For the third time this season, Russell Westbrook had a 40 point triple-double. The rest of the NBA has zero such nights. Russ finished with 45 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists.
This was Russell’s 14th triple-double of the season, and the Thunder are an impressive 11-3 when Russ posts a triple-double. Even more absurd: this was the third straight game in which Russ has had over 40 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. Just Russdiculous.
The Thunder were victorious, defeating the Boston Celtics, who were winners of four straight with Isaiah Thomas back in the lineup.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
| Celtics | 28 | 26 | 25 | 33 | 112 |
| Thunder | 25 | 33 | 30 | 29 | 117 |
Just a quick aside: listening to Tommy Heinsohn on color commentary was an absolute treat. His blatant bias towards the Celtics was a refreshing change of pace from a majority of commentators who try to at least make a slight appearance at being unbiased. I was particularly impressed with how staunchly he defended Al Horford even after he got called for a flagrant for throwing a bow across Russ’s face.
Anyways, the story of the first half for the Thunder was rookie Domantas Sabonis and his perfect start from the field, shooting 7-7 in the first half. The rook would finish with a cool 20 points on 8-11 shooting (4-6 from deep).
It was a three man band that got the job done for the Thunder tonight (and yes, that was a reference to the amazing WWE gimmick led by the amazing Heath Slater from a few years ago). Russ, Domas and Enes Kanter combined for 85 points for the Thunder. Kanter, like Sabonis, had 20 points in 23 minutes off the bench on 8-13 shooting. No other player on the Thunder scored in double figures.
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The Thunder as a team were blistering from the field tonight shooting a robust 51% (41-80) and 42.3% from deep. Of their 41 converted buckets, 27 came off assists. OKC was sloppy early, but managed to settle down and found their groove as the game went along. Both teams would end the evening with 13 turnovers.
Much to the chagrin of the Boston faithful, the zebras appeared to be squarely in the Thunder’s pocket this evening, as OKC was the beneficiary of several very questionable calls from the dudes in the stripped shirts. To be fair, there were a few bad calls that went the Celtics way as well, but for the most part it did appear to be a one way street. Boston had 8 more fouls than OKC, and I’d say all 8 of them could’ve just as easily been non-calls.
Dec 23, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens argues a call with the official during the second half against the Oklahoma City Thunder at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
On the flip side, Boston shot 44% from the field, and 32% from deep. It was all Amir Johnson for the Celtics early, as he gave the Thunder fits, particularly in the first quarter. Johnson would finish with 17 points, 6 boards, and 5 dimes. The Celtics had a pretty balanced attack tonight, as four of their five starters finished with double digit scoring outputs, with Jae Crowder being the exception.
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None shined brighter than the Little Giant Isaiah Thomas. Thomas paced the Celtics with 34 points and 10 assists on 12-22 shooting. He’s unlike any player I’ve ever seen before; you can lose him in the crowd, but he plays like he’s as big as Shaq. It’s an amazing sight to behold. The Boston faithful appear to love him nearly as much as Thunder Nation loves Russ. Not quite, but they serenaded him with MVP chants as he shot foul shots late in the contest.
All-in-all, this was a quality win for the Thunder, who improve to 18-12, while the Celtics drop to 17-13. The Thunder have swept the two game season series against Boston. I wish it was more than two games, as these teams match up perfectly.
The Thunder have tomorrow off before hosting the Coach Thibs, Karl-Anthony Towns, and the rest of the TimberPups on Christmas Day…
