LDN - Sports

Durant pours in 39 as Warriors rout his former team

[November 04, 2016] OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Golden State Warriors are starting to resemble their record-breaking 2015-16 edition.

Even if there is one big reason they don't look the same.

Newcomer Kevin Durant overwhelmed his former mates with a long-range shooting exhibition Thursday night, scoring 39 points as the Golden State Warriors earned a 122-96 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in a rematch of last year's thrilling Western Conference finals.

The win was the Warriors' second in a row over a stubborn 2016 playoff opponent after the club staggered out of the gate with a loss to the San Antonio Spurs and narrow wins over the New Orleans Pelicans and Phoenix Suns. Golden State routed the Trail Blazers in Portland on Tuesday.

"The last two games, I think we put together a full game," Durant said. "Defensively, we covered each other. We're getting easy shots. Twenty-seven assists against a (Thunder) team that switched all night is pretty good."

Durant connected on seven of 11 3-point attempts en route to a season-best point total, helping the Warriors (4-1) find the perimeter magic that for the most part was lacking while the club accumulated just the NBA's 22nd-best 3-point percentage through four games.

"I think the beauty of what Kevin does is he can kind of sense what's needed in the game and take over any game," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "He's perfectly content to assess the situation and dominate when he needs to. That's a special quality in a superstar."

Russell Westbrook countered with 20 points, 10 assists and six rebounds for the Thunder, who took the court undefeated in four games but quickly fell victim to the wear and tear of a tough 85-83 road win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.

"We had some moments here and there," Thunder coach Billy Donovan said. "For our guys on the back-to-back, Clippers and this game ... I think two games like that, there's a lot we can take from."

While the Thunder were enduring their first back-to-back of the season, the Warriors were beginning their first. They travel to Los Angeles to take on the Lakers on Friday night.

Durant, who averaged 27.4 points over nine seasons to begin his NBA career with Oklahoma City before leaving as a free agent last summer, dominated the first meeting since the July move from the very first minute.

He bombed in a 3-pointer on Golden State's first offensive possession and had 13 points by first quarter's end, helping the Warriors hang within 32-31 after falling behind by as many as 10 early on.

The plan was to "ease" Durant into the game, Kerr insisted.

"I didn't want to call plays for him to force the issue," the coach said. "The first play that we called, Draymond (Green) decided to throw it to KD. It was supposed to be a fake handoff ... and Draymond just handed it to KD, and KD pulled up and made the three.

"What do I know?"

Klay Thompson hit a 3-pointer and Stephen Curry, twice fouled on 3-point attempts, connected on five of six free throws as the Warriors used a 14-4 spurt to go up 52-38 just past the midpoint of the second quarter.

When Durant returned from a rest to bury three more 3-pointers and throw down a dunk, the margin exploded to 68-43 by halftime.

The Warriors' runaway was unintentionally ignited by Thunder reserve Jerami Grant, who dunked over Durant, promoting some dialogue that only served to inspire the newest Warrior.

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Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) blocks the shot of Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) during the first half at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Thunder 122-96. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

"When you get dunked on like that, you want to come back and try to ignite your team," Durant said. "When the other team is dunking, I just try to go out and do the same. Over the course of the game, I try to make plays and get them back that way. It definitely sparked something in me."

The second half served only to decide the final numbers, which remained decidedly in Golden State's favor.

The Warriors began the game having made only 29.3 percent of their 3-pointers, with Durant having misfired 10 of his 13, Curry 21 of his 38 and Thompson a whopping 25 of his first 28.

They combined to go 13 of 25 against the Thunder.

"I thought the difference in the game was the fact that they were right at 50 percent at the half from the three and they had 12 offensive rebounds," Donovan said.

Curry hit a pair of 3-pointers during his 21-point, seven-assist outing. Thompson shot 4-for-8 on threes to account for a majority of his 18 points.

The Warriors shot 51.1 percent overall.

Green and Zaza Pachulia contributed 10 rebounds apiece for Golden State, which also won the battle of the backboards, 47-41.

Victor Oladipo buried four of his six 3-point attempts and led the Thunder with 21 points. Rookie Domantas Sabonis added 13 and Steven Adams 11.

The Thunder were held to 40.2 percent shooting from the field. Westbrook finished 4 of 15.

NOTES: Warriors SF Kevin Durant's 39 points equaled the NBA record for most in an initial meeting against a former team. SG Danny Ainge (for Sacramento against Boston) and PG Stephon Marbury (for New Jersey against Minnesota) share the distinction. ... Durant topped 20 points for the 69th consecutive game, tying SF Michael Jordan for the seventh-longest streak in NBA history. ... Asked before the game if Thunder PG Russell Westbrook's early numbers were sustainable, Warriors coach Steve Kerr retorted, "I guess Oscar Robertson did it, right?" Kerr went on to predict: "I would think at the end of the year, Russell will be awfully close to averaging a triple-double." ... Westbrook ended the night averaging 34.2 points, 9.6 rebounds and 10.0 assists. ... Warriors PG Stephen Curry played his 500th game, becoming the 17th player in franchise history to reach the milestone.

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