OKLAHOMA CITY -- For the Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Lakers, their matchup Monday night was irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. The fact that the Thunder won 112-79 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena was not going to get them any closer to winning the NBA title or knock the Lakers out of playoff contention.

However, with it being the final road game in the 20-year career of Kobe Bryant, the night was treated with all the pomp and circumstance of a postseason encounter.

But at the end of the day, the Thunder's star players just wanted to make sure Bryant got the type of send-off they knew he would respect.

"I remember when Michael Jordan was on his way out and Kobe didn't take it easy on him," Thunder forward Kevin Durant said. "That's all I was thinking. I was trying to destroy him every chance I got. Every time I got the ball, he was 'Come on. Let's see what you got.' That shows what type of player, what type of competitor he is. I just wanted to play against him one last time."

Durant scored 34 points on 11-of-18 shooting from the field. He was also 6 of 11 from behind the 3-point line to extend his steak of scoring at least 20 points to 64 straight games.

Russell Westbrook posted 13 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists, and his 18 triple-doubles are the most by any player for one season in the past 30 years. It's a stat that even Bryant had to admire.

"I have never seen guy get as many triples-doubles as many times as he has in a season," Bryant said. "That is pretty outrageous what he has been able to do all year long. He has been flying under the radar because of what Steph (Curry) is doing up there in Golden State. But he is having a remarkable season himself."

Steven Adams posted 13 points and 15 rebounds as the Thunder improved to 55-26 with one game left Tuesday in San Antonio.

Bryant had 13 points on 4-of-12 shooting. With the end to his 20-year NBA career coming Wednesday in Los Angeles, he played only 19 minutes.

Metta World Peace came off the bench to score 12 points. Rookie DeAngelo Russell added 11 points as the Lakers dropped to 16-65.

Los Angeles will close out its season and Bryant's career Wednesday at home. It's something Bryant is eying with anticipation.

"I feel really excited," Bryant said. "I feel really happy. I'm looking forward to lacing them up one more time."

Oklahoma City will finish the regular season with a 32-9 home record. That is fourth best in the NBA behind San Antonio, Golden State and Cleveland.

Those who thought Bryant was going to take it easy before heading home for the last game of his career got a rude awakening when he took the floor Monday. He played the entire first quarter and scored all 13 of his points on 4-of-10 shooting. That included raining down three 3-pointers as the Lakers trailed by six.

Bryant and Durant challenged each other several times throughout the game. On one series, Durant shot a 3-pointer and missed. Adams got the rebound for the Thunder and Bryant yelled at Adams to give the ball back to Durant.

"I shook Kobe's hand," Adams said after the game. "I ain't going to wash my hand for like a week."

After trailing by 10 at half, the Lakers were overwhelmed in the third quarter. The Thunder used a 19-0 run to knock the fight out of the visitors.

Durant did most of the damage as he poured in 16 points in the quarter to put the contest away.

As impressive and energetic as Bryant was early, Westbrook once again showed that he is not affected by nostalgia. He posted a triple-double in the first half with 11 points, 10 assists and 11 rebounds.

It took Westbrook just 18 minutes to get his triple-double, which was the quickest he has achieved a triple-double in his career. It was also just one minute off the fastest triple-double in NBA history, a record set by Jim Tucker in 1955. Westbrook now has five triple-doubles in under 30 minutes playing time. The rest of the league has one.

Bryant said he knows he is leaving the league in good hands with the likes of Durant and Westbrook, players he feels a special connection with due to their personalities.

"I didn't smile much on the court either," Bryant said of Westbrook. "He plays the game with such energy, such aggressiveness, it needs to be appreciated. He is not out there trying to be cute with the basketball. He's not out there trying to look fancy. This guy's playing hard every time down."

NOTES: Oklahoma F Kevin Durant said he picked up lessons from Kobe Bryant throughout his nine years in the NBA. That includes a memorable encounter early in his career. "I remember one time after my first year in the league, we had Olympic trials in Vegas and we had a day off. That's when the young players and the Olympians were all together. They had two buses ready for guys to go work out. Me and Jeff Green were the only two on the first bus. Right when it was about to leave we see Kobe walking on by himself when everybody else took the day off. We worked out on one end and he worked out on the other. He made 50 shots from the 3-point line. That takes a lot to make 50 from seven spots. He was dripping with sweat. The best player in the league and he took a bus to a high school gym to put some work in. He's old school and that's exactly what I wanted to be like." ... Lakers coach Byron Scott on how much Bryant will play Wednesday in his final game of his career. "He'll play more in that game than he has in any all season," Scott said. ... Before Monday's game, Durant and G Russell Westbrook presented Bryant with a book that had personal messages from each member of the Thunder. ... Oklahoma City issued more than 150 media credentials for Monday's game against Los Angeles. That is the most this season.