chrism
11-25-2009, 09:26 PM
SALT LAKE CITY — Kevin Durant scored 28 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder held off a late surge by Utah for a 104-94 win over the Jazz on Tuesday night.
Durant also had eight assists and Jeff Green had 19 points, six rebounds and five assists as the Thunder ended a four-game losing streak in Utah.
The Thunder built a 19-point lead early in the fourth quarter and didn't allow the Jazz to get any closer than eight down the stretch.
Carlos Boozer had 26 points and seven rebounds and Deron Williams had 10 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for the Jazz, who committed 24 turnovers.
The Jazz never recovered after being outscored 31-16 in the third quarter as the Thunder won in Utah for the first time since April 2007 _ when they were still the Seattle SuperSonics.
Russell Westbrook scored 17 and James Harden added 10 points for Oklahoma City, which shot 4 for 14 from the floor in the fourth quarter but had a big enough lead to hang on.
Utah's turnovers led to 25 points for the Thunder and put the Jazz too far behind to make a comeback, although they did get close.
After Durant's layup put Oklahoma City up 92-73, the Jazz answered with a 15-4 run to revive their fans and quiet the boos that had been echoing much of the game. Mehmet Okur started the run with a 3-pointer, Wesley Matthews made a free throw and Andrei Kirilenko added a 3-pointer to keep the Jazz rolling. Paul Millsap added a basket, then Boozer hit back-to-back jumpers to get Utah to 96-86.
Millsap added a dunk with 2:58 left, but Westbrook stopped the momentum with four straight foul shots and Green sealed it with a hook shot that gave Oklahoma City a 102-88 lead with about a minute left.
Millsap had 19 points and seven rebounds, and Kirilenko added 14 points and six boards for the Jazz.
The Thunder opened the second half by making six of their first 10 shots, taking a 66-60 lead on Durant's 3-pointer with 7:36 left in the third quarter, then never let up the rest of the period.
Oklahoma City used a 9-2 run to take a 79-66 lead on Durant's 22-foot jumper, then closed the third with five straight points to go up 84-68. Fans muttered boos throughout the quarter, then let the Jazz have it between periods.
Utah went scoreless from Boozer's dunk with 2:43 left until Kirilenko stole the ball and took it in for a dunk with 11:13 left in the game. Kirilenko drew a foul on the play and made the free throw to convert a three-point play, but that only pulled Utah to 85-71. The Thunder answered quickly on a 3-pointer by Kyle Weaver.
NOTES: Durant was one off his career high for assists. ... The Jazz fell to 4-3 at home. ... Okur's 3-pointer in the fourth quarter put him one ahead of Jeff Hornacek (439) for the most in Jazz history.
Durant also had eight assists and Jeff Green had 19 points, six rebounds and five assists as the Thunder ended a four-game losing streak in Utah.
The Thunder built a 19-point lead early in the fourth quarter and didn't allow the Jazz to get any closer than eight down the stretch.
Carlos Boozer had 26 points and seven rebounds and Deron Williams had 10 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for the Jazz, who committed 24 turnovers.
The Jazz never recovered after being outscored 31-16 in the third quarter as the Thunder won in Utah for the first time since April 2007 _ when they were still the Seattle SuperSonics.
Russell Westbrook scored 17 and James Harden added 10 points for Oklahoma City, which shot 4 for 14 from the floor in the fourth quarter but had a big enough lead to hang on.
Utah's turnovers led to 25 points for the Thunder and put the Jazz too far behind to make a comeback, although they did get close.
After Durant's layup put Oklahoma City up 92-73, the Jazz answered with a 15-4 run to revive their fans and quiet the boos that had been echoing much of the game. Mehmet Okur started the run with a 3-pointer, Wesley Matthews made a free throw and Andrei Kirilenko added a 3-pointer to keep the Jazz rolling. Paul Millsap added a basket, then Boozer hit back-to-back jumpers to get Utah to 96-86.
Millsap added a dunk with 2:58 left, but Westbrook stopped the momentum with four straight foul shots and Green sealed it with a hook shot that gave Oklahoma City a 102-88 lead with about a minute left.
Millsap had 19 points and seven rebounds, and Kirilenko added 14 points and six boards for the Jazz.
The Thunder opened the second half by making six of their first 10 shots, taking a 66-60 lead on Durant's 3-pointer with 7:36 left in the third quarter, then never let up the rest of the period.
Oklahoma City used a 9-2 run to take a 79-66 lead on Durant's 22-foot jumper, then closed the third with five straight points to go up 84-68. Fans muttered boos throughout the quarter, then let the Jazz have it between periods.
Utah went scoreless from Boozer's dunk with 2:43 left until Kirilenko stole the ball and took it in for a dunk with 11:13 left in the game. Kirilenko drew a foul on the play and made the free throw to convert a three-point play, but that only pulled Utah to 85-71. The Thunder answered quickly on a 3-pointer by Kyle Weaver.
NOTES: Durant was one off his career high for assists. ... The Jazz fell to 4-3 at home. ... Okur's 3-pointer in the fourth quarter put him one ahead of Jeff Hornacek (439) for the most in Jazz history.