Thunder (20-20) 127, Magic (15-29) 99
OKC pitched something near a perfect game on Friday night against Golden State, and did it again yesterday in Orlando.
Kevin Durant led the way with 21, and Russell Westbrook added 17 in the blowout win. The Thunder tallied 79 first-half points and shot 58 percent overall.
Victor Oladipo continued his strong play for the Magic in the loss. He scored 23 with 5 assists, and is averaging nearly 25-5-5 over his last five.
Spurs (26-16) 89, Jazz (14-27) 69
Utah just didn’t show up yesterday in San Antonio. The Jazz trailed by 16 at the break and never got back in the game.
Four Spurs finished in double-figures. Aron Baynes double-doubled with 12 and 11, while Tiago Splitter led the team with 14 points.
Rudy Gobert was again the bright spot for Utah. He hit 5/10 shots on his way to 13 points to go along with 18 boards and 4 rejections. He’s been dominant around the rim lately, and saw 29 minutes last night. It may not be long before he seizes a starting gig for the Jazz. Denver probably shouldn’t have swapped his draft rights for peanuts during the ’13 Draft.
Pelicans (20-20) 95, Raptors (26-14) 93
This game got off to a wildly slow start — it was 9-5 New Orleans seven minutes in — but rounded into a tight one. The Raptors led for much of the fourth quarter, but a late rally by the Pelicans gave them a two-point edge with under a minute to go. DeMar DeRozan then tied the game for Toronto at the line, but a bucket by Tyreke Evans in the closing seconds proved to be the game-winner.
Anthony Davis (toe) sat for the Pelicans, but you wouldn’t have noticed. Alexis Ajinca did his best Brow impression against his former employer, dropping 22 in 34 minutes. He posted 16 and 14 on Friday night. Evans was hot all night, finishing with a game-high 26 to go with his 5 assists and 5 rebounds.
DeRozan was Toronto’s high man with 22. Lou Williams hit 4/9 shots and 9/10 free throws to finish with 17 off the bench.
