The Thunder bounced back from a humbling loss in the opener of their Western Conference semifinal series against the Los Angeles Clippers with a thorough 112-101 victory on Wednesday.
Kevin Durant, a day after picking up his first MVP award, led the way with 32 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists, while Russell Westbrook recorded a triple-double with 31 points, 10 boards and 10 helpers.
What was absent in the Thunder's 17-point loss on Monday was found in evening the series as role players like Thabo Sefolosha, Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins all provided solid production.
Sefolosha scored all 12 of his points in a momentum-building third quarter, Ibaka netted 14 with seven rebounds and Perkins pulled down nine boards for a frontcourt that helped Oklahoma City to a 52-36 edge on the glass.
Chris Paul finished with 17 points and 11 assists to lead the Clippers but was far from the otherworldly force he was in the opener. J.J. Redick scored a team-high 18 points but had just two after halftime, and Blake Griffin, who finished third in the MVP voting, shot just 5-of-13 from the field for 15 points.
The Clippers only made a third of their 3-point attempts (9-of-27) after connecting on 15-of-29 from long range in their homecourt-stealing win.
The series shifts to LA's Staples Center for Game 3 on Friday night.
[SportsNetwork.com]
