Russell Westbrook narrowly missed a triple-double with 30 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, and the Oklahoma City Thunder held on down the stretch for a 109-104 victory over the visiting Charlotte Hornets on Friday night.
Westbrook hit four free throws in the final 11.2 seconds, after the Hornets got within one point on two different occasions.
Westbrook's two free throws with 11.2 made it 107-104 and were all the Thunder would need after Charlotte's Kemba Walker missed a tying 3-point attempt with three seconds left. Westbrook then tacked on two more insurance points with 2.4 seconds remaining.
The win was the Thunder's 12th in the last 14 games and came after a 28-point win at Golden State on Wednesday night. It also gave the Thunder (12-6) a season's sweep over the Hornets after they rallied from a 19-point deficit to win in Charlotte three weeks ago.
The Thunder also got 23 points from Dennis Schroder, 19 from Paul George, 13 from Steven Adams, and 11 from Jerami Grant.
Walker led the Hornets with 25 points. Jeremy Lamb scored 18, Frank Kaminsky 12, Dwayne Bacon 11, and Marvin Williams and Cody Zeller 10 each. Williams missed a 3-pointer in the final minute that could have given the Hornets the lead.
Charlotte played without Tony Parker (ribs), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (ankle) and Willy Hernangomez (ankle).
The Hornets (9-9) were looking for their first three-game winning streak of the season.
Oklahoma City led after each quarter, 33-31 after one, 62-57 at halftime, and 89-80 after three quarters. OKC's biggest lead of the game was 13 at 89-76. Charlotte actually led by nine early in the game before the Thunder took control.
The Thunder will host Denver on Saturday, while the Hornets close out a short two-game road trip on Sunday at Atlanta.
--Field Level Media
Charlotte | Oklahoma City | |
Kemba Walker 25 | Scoring | Russell Westbrook 30 |
Kemba Walker 8 | Assists | Russell Westbrook 8 |
Nicolas Batum 9 | Rebounds | Russell Westbrook 12 |
Jeremy Lamb 8 | Free Throws Made | Russell Westbrook 9 |
Jeremy Lamb 2 | Steals | Paul George 2 |
Frank Kaminsky 2 | Blocks | Steven Adams 1 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Charlotte | 104 | 45.7 | 6-31 | 12-14 | 24 | 46 | 5 | 8 | 14 |
Oklahoma City | 109 | 44.1 | 11-33 | 16-24 | 24 | 46 | 2 | 6 | 14 |