Hornets at Thunder
Coming off a rare subpar shooting outing, Russell Westbrook aims to get back on track Sunday when the Oklahoma City Thunder host the Charlotte Hornets. Westbrook remains one of the leading candidates for NBA MVP for the Thunder, who also are hoping to inch toward clinching the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference playoff race.
Prior to Friday, Westbrook's previous four games included the first ever perfect-shooting triple-double and scoring efforts of 39, 37 and 57 points - the most ever in a triple-double. However, he shot 8-of-22 in Friday's loss to San Antonio, although he still finished with a triple-double - his 39th of the season, two shy of the all-time record. "It happens like that sometimes," Westbrook said. "Sometimes you don't win a game. Stick with it. We'll be alright." The Hornets are on the outside of the playoffs looking in, but a third straight victory would give their postseason hopes a boost.
TV: 3 p.m. ET, FSN Oklahoma (Oklahoma City), FSN Southeast (Charlotte)
ABOUT THE HORNETS (35-41): The Hornets made 17 3-pointers in Friday's 122-114 win against Denver led by Frank Kaminsky (five), Kemba Walker (four) and Marvin Williams and Marco Belinelli (three each). Walker finished with 31 points and has 23 assists versus three turnovers in the last four games. Kaminsky has made multiple 3-pointers in four consecutive games and has shot 20-of-35 from the field (57 percent) in the last three outings.
ABOUT THE THUNDER (43-32): The Thunder received 16 points from Victor Oladipo against San Antonio and 13 from Steven Adams as they continue to look for a consistent second option alongside Westbrook. Oklahoma City is 1 1/2 games ahead of Memphis for sixth place in the West as a first-round matchup with the Rockets starts to seem like a sure thing. Enes Kanter has scored in double figures in 16 of the last 17 games with six double-doubles over that stretch.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Westbrook has recorded at least five turnovers in seven straight games.
2. Nicolas Batum scored 28 points to lead Charlotte to a 123-112 meeting in the first encounter between the teams this season.
3. Williams averages 6.6 rebounds and has recorded at least six boards in 13 straight games.