Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant fuel Thunder to Game 2 win
The Oklahoma City Thunder went to their stars to get a win over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 2 on Monday night. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook produced 57 of the Thunder’s points and 14 of the team’s 16 assists.
The dynamic duo
Durant and Westbrook scored or assisted on 81 of the 98 points the Thunder scored in Game 2, including the points scored by Durant on Westbrook assists. It’s the third game this postseason in which they accounted for at least 75 points (Games 3 and 5 versus the Dallas Mavericks).
The Thunder were 14-of-24 on shots taken off passes from Durant or Westbrook for 35 points. Of those 24 shots taken, 16 were uncontested, of which the Thunder made 10.
The Thunder have shot at least 50 percent from the field off passes from Durant and Westbrook in five of their six games this postseason.
Aldridge brilliant in loss
LaMarcus Aldridge led all scorers with 41 points in Game 2. Despite his best efforts, the Spurs lost for just the second time at home this season. Aldridge was 10-of-10 from the free throw line. His performance mirrors that of multiple NBA legends, as noted in the chart on the right.
In the last five minutes of the game, Aldridge scored all 13 of his team’s points, even outpacing the Thunder, who scored 11 during that stretch.
After his 38 points in Game 1, Aldridge became the third player in Spurs history (Tim Duncan and George Gervin are the others) with at least 70 points scored over the first two games of a postseason series.
What’s ahead
ESPN’s Basketball Power Index gives the Spurs a 65 percent chance to win the series, even though the series is tied 1-1 going to Oklahoma City. Game 2 was virtually a must-win for the Thunder, who entered the game with an 84 percent chance to lose the series.
Had the Thunder lost Game 2, they would have been down 2-0 in a series to a team that won 65 or more games in the regular season. Teams posting that many victories are 35-0 in postseason history when gaining a 2-0 series lead.
Fortunately for the Thunder, Durant and Westbrook made sure that didn’t happen.
