Westbrook rallies Thunder past Hornets

[November 02, 2018]  Russell Westbrook narrowly missed his first triple-double of the season with 29 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied from a 19-point second-half deficit to beat the host Charlotte Hornets 111-107 on Thursday night.

Westbrook scored 13 of his points in the fourth quarter as the Thunder stormed back after trailing 66-47 midway through the third quarter. Westbrook's drive with 35.1 seconds remaining gave the Thunder a 108-102 lead, and the Hornets never got closer than three.

The Thunder have won three straight.

Alex Abrines added 25 points for the Thunder, Dennis Schroder scored 21, Paul George finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Jerami Grant scored 10.

The Thunder shot just 42.7 percent from the field with George going 4 of 20. They were at 30.4 percent at halftime, trailing 48-44 at the half.

Charlotte scored the first 14 points of the second half and led 66-47 midway through the third quarter, but Oklahoma City fought back to cut the lead to 77-73 after three quarters.

Malik Monk and Kemba Walker led the Hornets with 21 points apiece. Tony Parker scored 17, Jeremy Lamb scored 13 and Nicolas Batum finished with 10. The Hornets were cold, too, finishing at 40.9 percent from the field and 11 of 41 from 3-point range.

The Hornets have lost four of their last six.

Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) goes up for a dunk in the first half against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

The Thunder continue to be without Andre Roberson (patellar tendon). The Hornets have been completely healthy all season.

Oklahoma City will continue on this brief two-game road trip at Washington on Friday. The Hornets were playing the second game of a four-game homestand. They'll host Cleveland on Saturday.

--Field Level Media

[© 2018 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2018 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.