Washington Wizards get best road win of the season in blowout of Oklahoma City Thunder
The Washington Wizards played the Oklahoma City Thunder tough through most of the game before putting on a route late against one of the NBA’s best teams.
The game had all the makings of a loss for the Washington Wizards: On the road, against one of the top teams in the league, and Russell Westbrook had a triple-double in less than three quarters. Yet, it couldn’t be further from the result, as the Wizards blew out the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-98 on Sunday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
This was Washington’s first win against the franchise since it moved to Oklahoma City from Seattle nearly a decade ago. Previously, the Wizards were 0-9 against the Thunder in the Sooner State.
In terms of the game itself, the Wizards fell behind early, trailing to double digits in the first quarter before closing the gap and basically never looking back. It was a collective effort that propelled the Wizards to the impressive victory.
Bradley Beal led the way yet again with 25 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists. Jeff Green contributed with 16 points and 6 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Otto Porter continued to make his presence felt since returning from injury, coming off the bench with 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists as well as 3 blocks. The rest of the bench unit also had a strong showing as Ian Mahinmi finished with 9 points to go with 10 rebounds, and Sam Dekker chipped in with 6 points and 7 rebounds.
Two keys areas where the Wizards have struggled as of late made the difference. Firstly, Washington easily won the rebounding battle, grabbing a season-high 55 boards to Oklahoma City’s 41. Secondly, they took care of the ball, committing just 9 turnovers.
Westbrook did what he does best, putting up a triple-double midway through the third quarter. He ultimately finished with 22 points, 15 rebounds, and 13 assists. Fellow All-Star Paul George put up 20 points. That wasn’t enough for the Thunder though.
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The Wizards, now 16-24, head in to a week that features contests against some of the Eastern Conference’s top teams: They’ll play a home-and-home against the Philadelphia 76ers (26-14) on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by a home game against the Milwaukee Bucks (27-11) on Friday, and rounding the week out with a Sunday afternoon match-up against the Toronto Raptors at Capital One Arena.