Stepping off of the snowy streets of downtown Oklahoma City into Chesapeake Energy Arena, Thunder fans were treated to a hot shooting night, and a run-and-gun 131-123 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Thunder shot 50 percent from the field, while the Bucks went 49-for-100, including 10-for-16 from the 3-point line. Head Coach Billy Donovan’s club mitigated 14 fewer field goal attempts by knocking down 37-of-40 free throw attempts. The aggressiveness the Thunder showed all night was the lifeblood for keeping the scoreboard moving, and keeping Milwaukee at bay.
“That just shows that we were attacking the basket and not settling for jump shots, which is great,” point guard Russell Westbrook said. “As long as we’re attacking it and making things happen, I’m okay with it.”
“Everybody is touching it and everybody is feeling good,” forward Kevin Durant said. “When guys are scrambling, we’re driving those closeouts, trying to find the open man. That’s easy basketball.”
After falling behind by as many as eight early, the Thunder rallied towards the end of the second quarter, using a 23-7 run to take an 11-point lead into halftime. The third quarter went to the Bucks, however, and Milwaukee cut the Thunder’s lead to as little as two. Behind the strong play of the bench to start the fourth quarter, the Thunder built its lead back up to 109-95 with 7:29 to play.
Milwaukee wasn’t knocked down, and neither team got a stop during a three-minute stretch late in the fourth quarter, leaving the game in the balance late, with the Thunder’s lead hovering between six and ten for the final six minutes.
“The last six minutes of the game, both teams were pretty much just trading baskets,” Donovan said. “We went small and tried to switch everything. This will be a really good opportunity for us to watch this and learn from this in terms of areas where we have to get better.”
Kevin Durant missed a jumper with 1:30 to go and one Bucks free throw made it 125-119. Russell Westbrook responded with a driving layup, then he made a steal, but Milwaukee would score on a steal and a fast break dunk to make it 127-121. By that time there was less than a minute to go, and after Durant contested a Khris Middleton 3-pointer and forced a miss, there was too little time for a Bucks comeback.
The Thunder recognized that clearly defense, and defensive rebounding, will be crucial areas it must address over the next two days before it suits up against the Phoenix Suns on New Year’s Eve. The offense, despite Durant and Westbrook combining to shoot just 16-for-40 from the floor, managed to put up the most points in a regulation game for the Thunder this season. Led by Durant’s 13-for-13 free throw night, the Thunder stayed aggressive in attacking the rim to rack up fouls and to go to the line.
“I missed a number of shots that I felt were great shots, so I had to get to the rim,” Durant said. “I had to get there, try to get fouled and get to the free throw line to generate points for our team.”
One of the players who benefitted from the Thunder’s attacking style was Enes Kanter, who led the Thunder’s bench with 23 points on 9-for-12 shooting, in addition to a 5-for-6 mark from the free throw line. With Durant, Westbrook and Dion Waiters attacking the lane, Kanter found himself alone with the ball around the rim either on dump-offs or on put-back rebounds, either to finish or draw a foul.
“He did a great job tonight of playing off of our guards,” Westbrook said of Kanter. “They did a good job of putting two on the ball. Our job is to find a way to get him open shots.”
“He’s doing a great job of making himself available, catching passes, finishing well and rebounding the ball on the offensive glass,” Durant added.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Payne Sparks the Second Unit
Fifty-three of the Thunder’s 131 points came from the reserves on Tuesday night, thanks to an explosive offensive performance by multiple players from the bench group, which was headlined by the play of point guard Cameron Payne. Making his second consecutive appearance in the rotation, the rookie seemed to be the catalyst for the energy the Thunder needed to take control in the second half.
“He saved us tonight and the second unit saved us tonight,” Durant said of Payne. “The first unit didn’t play so well. The second unit came through and played big for us.”
“He did an amazing job tonight. He was really ready and really focused,” Kanter said. “He was having fun out there and making everybody good, not just himself. I’m really proud of him.”
Perpetually in motion, popping from spot to spot on the floor like a water bug, Payne was seemingly just up to stuff on both ends of the floor, finding a way to be in the middle of the action. His 16 points on 5-for-6 shooting were important to the final score, but his three assists, three rebounds and length on defense were equally vital. There’s still plenty of growth ahead for the rookie and there will be ups and downs, but his teammates have confidence in his ability to impact the game.
“He’s a natural point guard. He’s been that way his whole life. I could tell when I first saw him play,” Durant said of the rookie. “He’s looking and his eyes are always moving up the court. When he’s in transition, he’s not trying to score, he’s looking for everybody else. That’s good to have on our team.”
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By the Numbers
3 – Assists for Cameron Payne in 15 minutes of action, while shooting 5-for-6 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the free throw line
37-for-40 – The Thunder’s shooting numbers from the free throw line against the Bucks, led by 13-for-13 shooting by Kevin Durant
53 – Bench points for the Thunder, headlined by Enes Kanter’s 23 points on 9-for-12 shooting and Anthony Morrow’s 10 points on 3-for-5 shooting from three- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Last Word
“We were able to get some stops. When they made a run we did a good job of sticking together and running some offense. We got some fouls and got to the line and slowed their run down.” - point guard Russell Westbrook