Thunder 97, Magic 89
Kevin Durant poured in a game-high 30 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder opened their season with a convincing 97-89 home victory over the Orlando Magic on Christmas Day.
Durant, the two-time defending scoring champ, went 11-for-19 from the field and added five assists and six rebounds fin the victory. The Thunder dominated from beyond the arc, hitting 10 of 19 attempts.
The Magic led by as many as seven points early in the first quarter, but managed just four points in the final 7:43 as the Thunder surged out to a five-point edge. Eric Maynor and Daequan Cook hit consecutive 3-pointers early in the second to extend the advantage to seven, and Durant followed with five straight points to help Oklahoma City go into the break ahead 55-41.
Six straight points from Von Wafer and a Ryan Anderson three-pointer with 1:20 remaining made it a single-digit deficit, but the Magic would get no closer.
Anderson led the way with 25 points while Jameer Nelson added 18.
Dwight Howard, whose name was bandied about in trade rumors throughout the preseason, finished with 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting. He added 15 rebounds.