NBA wrap: Warriors, Thunder survive scares vs bottom dwellers

Russell Westbrook had 43 points while Stephen Curry put up 28 in limited minutes in shaky victories.

Published : Mar 03, 2018 12:32 IST

 Russell Westbrook contributed with 43 points to Oklahoma City Thunder’s defeat of Pheonix Suns.
Russell Westbrook contributed with 43 points to Oklahoma City Thunder’s defeat of Pheonix Suns.
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Russell Westbrook contributed with 43 points to Oklahoma City Thunder’s defeat of Pheonix Suns.

Neither Warriors nor Thunder wanted to win like they did on Friday, but they'll take it.

Russell Westbrook scored 43 points while adding 14 rebounds and eight assists in Oklahoma City's 122-116 win over Suns while the Warriors overcame a second half without Stephen Curry to take down Hawks 114-109.

It took a clutch 3-pointer in the final minute in addition to two big offensive rebounds from Westbrook to lock up the victory for Thunder. "Crunch time is the most important part of the game man, the last five minutes," Westbrook told Fox Sports after the game. "I just try to stay in attack mode and keep making plays."

Read: Navjot Kaur clinches gold, Sakshi wins bronze

It took all the plays the Thunder could get as Devin Booker had 39 points, eight rebounds and six assists himself for Suns.

Meanwhile, Warriors watched Curry go out with an ankle injury in the second half, but thanks to a late dunk from Kevin Durant they were able to come away with a victory. Curry finished with 28 points despite playing just 24 minutes. His injury is not thought to be serious.

Studs of the night

Magic forward Aaron Gordon had 27 points and 13 assists while team-mate Nikola Vucevic had 22 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in a 115-106 overtime win over Pistons.

Bucks forward Khris Middleton had 30 points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists, but Bucks fell to Pacers 103-96.

Dud of the night

Hornets guard Michael Carter-Williams played 14 minutes, but he may as well have played none as he went 0 for 6 from the floor with just two points and two pivotal missed free throws in a 110-99 loss to 76ers.

Highlight

Raptors forward CJ Miles couldn't miss from 3-point range on Friday as he hit six treys in Toronto's 102-95 win over Wizards.

What’s next

Celtics (44-19) at Rockets (49-14) 8:30 p.m. ET — The last time these two teams faced off, the Celtics came back from a huge deficit and James Harden was called for back-to-back controversial offensive fouls in the final seconds. Rockets will want some revenge and will be looking to extend its winning streak to 15 games.

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