It took nearly three years for Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Co. to win a game in Orlando, but the Oklahoma City Thunder finally got it done.
Trailing for nearly the entire game, the Thunder (29-7) used a late fourth-quarter push led by the dynamic All-Star duo of Durant and Westbrook to notch their first road win against the Magic, 105-102, Thursday night at the Amway Center.
It was the Thunder’s first win in Orlando since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City in 2008, and their first road triumph against the Magic (23-14) in almost eight years, dating back to March of 2004 when they were the Seattle SuperSonics.
Led by a combined 67 points from Durant and Westbrook and a 15-5 run that started with just five minutes remaining in the contest, the Thunder were able to steal a game that Orlando seemed poised to win for the first three-and-a-half quarters.
“Well they are a hard team to stop, there’s no question. The last shot that Durant made was a really tough one, but our fourth-quarter defense was pathetic. I give them credit for what they did and they’re hard to stop, but it shouldn’t be every possession right at the rim on every pick and roll,” Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy said. ” We didn’t stop the ball one time…They made some tough shots, but we didn’t defend well enough in the fourth quarter to deserve to win that game.”
Dwight Howard led five Magic players in double figures with 33 points, 16 of them coming in the third quarter alone, but Orlando’s poor fourth quarter defense ultimately doomed them in their first game back at home since hosting the All-Star Game this past weekend.
The Magic were outscored 35-21 in the final quarter, allowing Oklahoma City to shoot 10-of-15 from the field, including three-for-five from downtown. In addition, Orlando shot a woeful 32 percent in the fourth, and only went three-for-eight from the three-point line.
Despite being down 11 points late, the Thunder refused to give up.
“We were down 11. All we were focused on is trying to make up a point a minute, and our guys did that…We fight every game, every possession. That’s one of the strengths of our team, we never give up,” Thunder head coach Scott Brooks said. “Even when things aren’t going well, we still hang in there and stick together. That’s what good basketball teams do, and I’m proud of our guys.”
Durant, who won his first All-Star Game MVP Award less than a week ago on Orlando’s home floor, scored 18 of his game-high 38 points in the fourth, and the Oklahoma City offense was simply too much for the Magic down the stretch.
“There wasn’t anything we did in the fourth quarter that they had any trouble with. If we had one good defensive possession in the fourth quarter, I missed it,” Van Gundy said.
The icing on the cake was a Durant one-footed jumper from the top of the key as the shot clock expired that put the Thunder up five points with a minute to go.
“They are a tough team to guard. We had to figure them out and it took awhile. Dwight is such a load, and he has so many shooters around him. I think we did a good job of playing hard, and it made up for a lot of mistakes,” Durant said. “We got a good comeback win.”
Although the game appeared over, the Magic made things interesting when back-to-back threes by Jason Richardson and Ryan Anderson got them within striking distance. With Orlando down three, they fouled Daequan Cook, who missed both of his free throws to give the Magic one last shot with three seconds left in regulation.
Richardson grabbed the board, took the ball the length of the court and fired up a desperation three-pointer, but it fell short and the Thunder escaped with the win.
Richardson finished with 16 points and six rebounds, while Anderson and Jameer Nelson chipped in 15 points a piece. Nelson also contributed nine assists. Hedo Turkoglu added 11 points for the Magic.
Overall, the Magic shot 47.6 percent from the floor and 36 percent from beyond the arc, while allowing the Thunder to shoot 51 percent from the field and eight-of-18 from the deep in the game.
It was a disappointing game for Orlando, as they played well on both sides of the ball throughout the first three quarters. Howard, who also had nine rebounds, dominated under the basket, giving the Magic a 52-40 edge in points in the paint.
Orlando also held a 18-9 advantage in second-chance points, outrebounded the Thunder 38-36 and had fewer turnovers than their opponents.
However, they simply couldn’t contain the Thunder offense when it mattered most.
Westbrook finished with a double-double, posting 29 points and 10 assists, while James Harden had 13 points, five rebounds and five assists off the bench.
Orlando will look to rebound when they host the Milwaukee Bucks Saturday at 7 p.m.
