Thunder 117, Magic 114
OKLAHOMA CITY -- Kevin Durant scored 37 points, including a game-winning 3-pointer, to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder past the Orlando Magic 117-114 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on Wednesday.
Durant, a forward, was 12 of 25 from the field and 6 of 12 from 3-point range. Guard Russell Westbrook was just as impressive with 24 points, 19 rebounds and 14 assists. It was his eighth triple-double of the season and a career high in rebounds.
Guard Victor Oladipo paced the Magic with 37 points and seven rebounds. Center Nikola Vucevic and guard Mario Hezonja each scored 16 points for Orlando.
With 6:44 left in the fourth quarter, Westbrook streaked coast to coast for a layup to give Thunder one-point lead. Magic center Jason Smith answered with a long jumper from the top of the key.
Durant then came down and buried a 3-pointer before coming up with a steal on the other end.
Oladipo knocked in a jumper to tie game and hit a pair of free throws to put the Magic ahead 111-109.
Even though the Magic had Durant double-teamed, he responded with a 3-pointer with 2:45 on the clock. Smith countered with a corner 3-pointer of his own to put Magic up by two.
The Thunder defense forced the Magic into a bad shot and Oklahoma City got the rebound with 38 seconds left.
Westbrook tied the game with a layup before Thunder forward Serge Ibaka blocked Oladipo's layup attempt. With the game tied and forward Tobias Harris guarding him, Durant drained a game-winning 3-pointer with 0.5 seconds on the clock.
The Thunder outrebounded the magic 50-39.
Oklahoma City was all about ball movement to start the game. They had nine assists in their first 14 baskets with six players scoring at least one basket.
However, the Thunder's defense was less effective. The Magic shot 53 percent in the first quarter and a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Hezonja tied the game at 32-32 heading into the second quarter.
The Thunder couldn't slow down Oladipo in the first half. He missed only two shots on his way to 17 points.
Westbrook was two rebounds short of a triple-double in first half, yet Oklahoma City only held a 66-65 advantage at halftime.
NOTES: Oklahoma City F Kevin Durant received the Western Conference Player of the Month award for January. During the month, Durant was second in the NBA in scoring (28.5) and added 9.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists to help the Thunder to an 13-3 record. He shot 49.7 percent from the field and 88.8 percent from the free throw line. "You can play a perfect defensive possession against Kevin Durant," Orlando coach Scott Skiles said, "he can still score on you." ... Orlando C Dewayne Dedmon sat out with a sprained foot. "He was in practice yesterday, doing some three-on-three and stuff like that," Skiles said. "He got through it all. He knew when he did, but he kept on playing. Started experiencing some soreness back at the hotel." ... Durant announced via Twitter that a movie about his mother is being made for LifeTime TV. "I can never thank my mom enough for all she's done and sacrificed," Durant posted. "See it all in #TheRealMVP: The Wanda Pratt Story coming to @lifetimetv."