Westbrook posts 34th triple-double as Thunder beat Raptors

TORONTO, Canada – Russell Westbrook delivered his 34th triple double of the season as the Oklahoma City Thunder won their fourth straight with a 123-102 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Thursday, March 16 (Friday Manila time).

Westbrook also had 16 assists and 10 rebounds for the Thunder who led by as many as 32 after grabbing a 30-point advantage early in the final quarter.

“I thought we did a good job defensively, just playing 48 minutes on both sides of the ball,” Westbrook said.

“They are an aggressive team and they like to trap and stuff, so my job was able to use that to my advantage and take on two people and make sure the other guys get open.”

Victor Oladipo added 23 points as the Thunder improved to 39-29 on the season. 

The Raptors dropped to 29-29 and have lost four of their past seven games.

The Thunder had a 10-point cushion at the half and stretched that to 27 at the end of the third.

“(Westbrook) was a one-man wrecking crew,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said.

“He caused a lot of chain reactions. It starts with him. We had multiple breakdowns in terms of getting him under control because he is a great player.” 

Enes Kanter contributed 14 points off the bench for Oklahoma City. Andre Roberson had 13 points, and Steven Adams and Taj Gibson each scored 10.

DeMar DeRozan led Toronto with 22 points. Norman Powell added 13 points off the bench and Cory Joseph had 11 points. Serge Ibaka and Delon Wright each scored 10 points.

The Thunder led 58-48 at the intermission. Westbrook had 12 points, 11 assists and six rebounds in the first half.

DeRozan led Toronto with 14 first-half points. – Rappler.com