Westbrook scores 45 points, Thunder beat short-handed Mavs
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Russell Westbrook scored 45 points to help the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the short-handed Dallas Mavericks 109-98 on Thursday night.
The NBA scoring leader made 16 of 29 shots after being named an All-Star reserve earlier in the night. He had eight rebounds and three assists, ending his triple-doubles streak at three games.
Victor Oladipo added 17 points, and Steven Adams had 15 for the Thunder. They have won three straight.
Harrison Barnes scored 31 points, and Justin Anderson added 17 for the Mavericks. They had won five of seven.
Dallas was without four of its top five scorers. Forward Wesley Matthews sat out with a right hip strain, forward Dirk Nowitzki rested on the second game of a back-to-back, guard J.J. Barea was out with a left calf strain, and guard Deron Williams was out with a sprained left big toe.
Oladipo made a 3-pointer with 5.3 seconds left in the first half to put the Thunder up 53-52, but Dorian Finney-Smith answered with a 3 as time expired in the half to put the Mavericks up 55-53.
Oklahoma City gained control in the third quarter and put the Mavericks into foul trouble. Westbrook scored 13 points in the period, and Oklahoma City led 87-73 heading into the fourth quarter.
Dallas roared back in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter and cut Oklahoma City's lead to three, but rookie Domantas Sabonis drained a 3-pointer, and Dallas called a timeout. Westbrook then checked in after a short rest, and he scored 17 points in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.
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TIP INS
Mavericks: Dallas committed just one turnover in the first quarter. ... Rookie G Pierre Jackson suffered a left hamstring pull in the second quarter and only played 13 minutes in his first career start. ... Barnes made 13 of 26 shots.
Thunder: Westbrook went without an assist in the first half, and without an assist or rebound in the second quarter. ... Oklahoma City shot 50 percent in the first half. ... F Enes Kanter left the game with a right wrist injury in the second quarter. He hurt his hand while punching a chair in frustration. He finished with four points in nine minutes.
UP NEXT
The Mavericks play at the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.
The Thunder play at the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday.
