- HOME
- NEWS
- SPORTS
- BUSINESS
- FYI/LIVING
- ENTERTAINMENT
- OPINION
- JOBS
- CARS
- REAL ESTATE
- RENTALS
- CLASSIFIEDS
- SHOPPING
- EXTRAS
'); } -->
OKLAHOMA CITY | Stan Van Gundy doesn’t care how many players the Orlando Magic are missing. He still wants the rest to give their best.
Kevin Durant scored 28 points, Russell Westbrook added 17 points and 10 assists and the Oklahoma City Thunder ran away from the defending Eastern Conference champions in the second half Sunday night for a 102-74 victory.
“We’re not a good basketball team right now. I’ve been saying that, but nobody’s listening,” Van Gundy said. “We’re totally predicated on shooting. We do not have any kind of defensive mind-set, we don’t have much toughness and we’re not very smart. So, right now we’re not a very good team.”
The Magic played for the fourth time this season without All-Stars Vince Carter (ankle) and Rashard Lewis (suspension), and also added Ryan Anderson (ankle) to their injured list. After a strong start, Orlando fell behind midway through the second quarter and never mounted a comeback.
“That’s a team that plays with great intensity. I would like to see our team play with that,” Van Gundy said. “We’ve had teams in the past the last couple years that have played with that. We don’t now. We play very soft and not with much intensity.”
Oklahoma City raced out of halftime to score the first eight points, and then added a 9-0 spurt shortly thereafter to push its lead to 72-49 on Nick Collison’s basket in the lane midway through the third period.
The Thunder removed any doubt with a run of 10 straight points in the fourth quarter, and coach Scott Brooks pulled the last of his starters after Durant’s three-point play pushed the lead to 96-63 with just under 5 minutes remaining.
“All things were clicking for us tonight, especially on the defensive end,” Durant said. “We’ve got to build on that and come back to work tomorrow.”
Dwight Howard led the Magic with 20 points, Mickael Pietrus scored 15 and Jameer Nelson 10. Orlando shot just 37 percent and couldn’t take advantage of a hefty advantage at the foul line, making just 21 of 34 attempts.
•At Detroit 88, Philadelphia 81
•At Portland 116, Minnesota 93
•At Sacramento 120, Golden State 107
•At LA Lakers 104, New Orleans 88
Highlights
•Jason Richardson scored 22 points and Steve Nash had 17 assists as the Suns beat the Wizards for the sixth straight time, including five in a row at the Verizon Center.
•Ben Gordon scored 23 points and Ben Wallace added 16 rebounds for the Pistons.
•Seven Kings scored in double figures, led by Tyreke Evans’ 23 points.
News
•Spurs guard Tony Parker is not expected to play today against Toronto because of a sore left ankle. The Spurs said Sunday that Parker’s injury was a mild sprain that could sideline him for a week.
@Nyx.CommentBody@