Saturday night had seven great NBA matchups including the OKC victory over the Denver Nuggets in which Russell Westbrook got his 17th triple-double of the season.
Westbrook can’t be stopped
The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets 121-106 on the back of Russell Westbrook’s 32-point, 17-rebound and 11-assist triple-double, Steven Adams had 16 points and six rebounds while Nigerian-American victor Oladipo finished with 15 points, three rebounds and three assists.
Denver were led by Wilson Chandler with 24 points and seven rebounds, Will Barton had 21 points and seven rebounds, Danilo Gallinari had 15 points and seven rebounds and Congolese guard Emmanuel Mudiay had one rebound, four assists and one steal.
Bulls trump Raptors
The Chicago Bulls beat the Toronto Raptors 123-118 on the back of Jimmy Butler’s 42-point, 10-rebound double-double, Dwyane Wade had 20 points, four rebounds and seven assists, and Doug McDermott finished with a 17-point,10-rebound double-double.
DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors with 36 points and eight rebounds, Kyle Lowry had a 27-point, 12-assist double-double, while Jonas Valanciunas and Cory Joseph combined for 28 with 14 points apiece. Cameroonian rookie Pascal Siakam did not play.
Jazz down Timberwolves
The Utah Jazz beat the Timberwolves 94-92 in Minnesota on the strength of George Hill’s 19 points, five rebounds and seven assists, Gordon Hayward had 16 points, Derrick Favors had 15 points and six rebounds, and Rudy Gobert had a 12-point, 13-rebound double-double. French-Senegalese forward Boris Diaw had one point, one rebound, one assist and a steal.
The Timberwolves were led by Zach LaVine with 24 points, nine rebounds and four assists, Karl-Anthony Towns had an 18-point, 15-rebound double-double, Andrew Wiggins had 16 points, five rebounds and four assists, and Senegalese center Gorgui Dieng finished with 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists.
Hawks beat Mavericks
The Atlanta Hawks beat the Dallas Mavericks 97-82. Tim Hardaway Jr had 22 points, German-Gambian Dennis Schroder had 20 points, Paul Millsap had 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists, Dwight Howard had a 15-point, 20-rebound double-double, and Swiss-South African Thabo Sefolosha had one rebound and one steal.
Harrison Barnes led the Mavs with 21 points and four rebounds, Dirk Nowitzki and Devin Harris combined for 22 with 11 points apiece, Wesley Matthews had nine points and four rebounds, while Tunisian center Salah Mejri finished with one rebound from two minutes on the court.
Spurs shine against Hornets
The San Antonio Spurs beat the Charlotte Hornets 102-85. Rookie Davis Bertans had 21 points, Kawhi Leonard scored 19 points, LaMarcus Aldridge had a 15-point, 11-rebound double-double, and Dewayne Dedmon also had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
The Hornets were led by Kemba Walker with 18 points, Jeremy Lamb had 13 points and eight rebounds, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 12 points and nine rebounds, and Marvin Williams had 11 points and five rebounds.
The Rest
In Saturday night’s other two games, the Indiana Pacers beat the New York Knicks 123-109 and the Boston Celtics beat the New Orleans Pelicans 117-108.
By Kaunda Chama
