OKLAHOMA CITY -- Oklahoma City needed a change of pace. In its first two games of the season, they were involved in down-to-the-wire thrillers.

So with Denver coming to town Sunday, they decided to take the drama out of the contest and put the Nuggets away early. Led by forward Kevin Durant's 25 points, the Thunder collected a 117-93 victory over the Nuggets at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.

The Thunder have started the season off with 3-0 record while the Nuggets fell to 1-2.

"I think we did a good job of coming back and locking in on the task at hand and just worry about us and not worry about the other team and took care of business," Westbrook said. "We did a good job of protecting the basket and rebounding the basketball."

Durant shot 8-of-11 from the field and knocked down three 3-pointers to go along with five assists and two rebounds. Forward Serge Ibaka added 18 points, seven rebounds and five blocked shots.

Guard Russell Westbrook scored 15 points on 7 of 13 shooting. He also collected nine rebounds and eight assists without playing in the fourth quarter.

For the second game in a row, the Nuggets offense was anemic. Forward Danilo Gallinari paced the team with 15 points on 3 of 13 shooting. Center Joffrey Lauvergne tallied 11 points and seven rebounds. Guard Will Barton came off the bench to score 15 points.

"They're a playoff and championship contending team so they're going to come out after you on defense," Denver guard Emmanuel Mudiay said. "But they thrive on fast-break points with Russ and KD. And, they're a good shooting team so at the same time they're a playoffs team and we're trying to get to that level."

Gallinari was on a mission in the first quarter. He attacked Durant offensively and forced him to pick up two early fouls. It allowed the Nuggets to take an early 17-16 lead.

However, guard Dion Waiters led the Thunder on a resurgence. But instead of doing it with his scoring, it was Waiters' passes to Westbrook and Ibaka that gave Oklahoma City its first lead.

"Me and coach had been talking about what's been going on," Waiters said. "I just said I need to get their early and get a rhythm. If I am able to get in there and get a rhythm, I'm able to get going. Not just for myself, but maybe to make plays for myself and others. That was the biggest thing. Tonight he threw me in early and I was able to get in a flow."

It was the Thunder's 3-point shooting that allowed them take a 58-50 into halftime. Led by guard D.J. Augustin, they shot 7 of 15 from behind the arc in the first half.

Oklahoma City picked up in the third quarter where it left off at halftime. They threw a 21-6 run on the Nuggets in the first six minutes of the quarter.

"It got away in the third quarter," Denver coach Mark Malone said. "It's an eight point game at halftime. I thought we had a good first half, all things considered. Then for whatever reason, we came out in that third quarter and just got our butts kicked. Thirty-seven points in one quarter, that's hard to do."

Denver quickly found itself down by 27 points before it started chipping away at the lead. Guard Jameer Nelson tried to settle the team down and run their offense.

But the pressure the Thunder put on Denver offensively was too much for the visiting team to slow down. Oklahoma City led by 25 at the end of the quarter and benched their starters the rest of the game.

"One of the things that can happen is you get a big lead, going into the fourth quarter, you lose focus and lose things you've been working for, for three quarters," Thunder coach Billy Donovan said. "I appreciated that the second unit came in there and they played well in the fourth quarter and we played well when we got up."

NOTES: With Oklahoma City playing two sets of back-to-back games in the next five days, coach Billy Donovan is not planning to put F Kevin Durant on a minute restriction. "He is fine right now," Donovan said of the veteran who missed the end of last season due to foot surgery. ... Denver coach Mike Malone is not happy with the evolution of his half-court offense. "On Wednesday in our opener, we saw great examples of ball movement, guys making plays for each other," Malone said. "For whatever reason on Friday night, we became a one-on-one, pound the ball, dribble, make a play for myself type team." ... The Thunder wore their new sunset-colored alternate jerseys for the first time. The bright orange and blue uniforms are the third alternate jerseys the team introduced in the past few years.