miaowang123: Classic in Vancouver two days earlier, th

Classic in Vancouver two days earlier, th

23 Feb 2018 at 22:08

SAN ANTONIO -- Russell Westbrook says theres no question Oklahoma City is the leagues best team. Akiem Hicks Jersey . He backed up his words Saturday night by leading the Thunder to a dominant victory in a place few visiting teams have had success. Westbrook had 31 points and eight assists and Oklahoma City used a strong second quarter to beat the San Antonio Spurs 113-100 for its ninth straight victory. "We got the best record in the league; I believe were the best team in the league regardless of who says this and who says that," Westbrook said. "You have to go out and play. You can predict anything, but you have to play the game." The Thunder outscored the Spurs 40-29 in the second quarter to hand San Antonio only its second home loss this season. "It was one of our best scoring quarters," Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. "Not sure we have even had a 40-point quarter this season, but we moved the ball well and made shots. Both teams are hard to guard and both teams can score points. We got hot there in the second." Tony Parker had 23 points and eight assists in his return from a two-game absence due to a bruised shin, but Kawhi Leonard was a late scratch following a dental procedure. Even though they were without their best defender on the wing, San Antonio said Leonards absence had little to do with the loss. "Well, Im sure wed like to have Kawhi, but that happens to every NBA team at some point in the season," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "You dont lose just because of that. We would have loved to have had him, but they played better than we did tonight for more of the game." Kevin Durant, whom Leonard would have defended, only had 17 points while going 6 for 14 from the field. Instead, it was Westbrook and reserve guard Reggie Jackson who proved difficult to stop. Jackson had 21 points, four assists and only one turnover in 30 minutes. "This is the second game hes been playing good against us," Parker said. "We have to find a solution for him. Westbrook and Durant they are going to score and take a lot of shots, but we cant let Jackson score that much. Thats two games in a row that I felt hes the one that hurt us the most." Westbrook and Jackson were a combined 21 for 36 and handed out 12 assists. Playing their seventh game in 10 days, the Spurs looked lethargic after a strong start. The Thunder never trailed after Jacksons reverse layup put them up 21-19 with a minute remaining in the first quarter. Jackson had 10 points in the quarter. "Once we move the ball the way we did tonight, everybody touches it, were a pretty good team," Durant said. "Once (the ball) gets sticky and try to play one-on-one, thats when we kind of struggle. Russell is doing a great job of getting everybody involved and picking and choosing his spots; when to score." The Spurs had won six of seven entering Saturdays game, but couldnt recover from the second-quarter pasting. "They made a lot of shots, you have to give them credit," Parker said. "I thought overall we played well, but they just played better." The Spurs committed five turnovers while taking only 17 shots in the period, which was one less than the Thunder made. San Antonio was 20 for 49 in the paint, continually missing layups. "That was tough," Parker said. "We couldnt get a lead. We were playing well, we made some stops, but we missed a lot of layups, thats basketball." The Spurs pulled within a pair of baskets on several occasions in the second half, but the Thunder responded with a small run each time. Jackson was usually at the forefront of the runs, going 8 for 14. "I just told the guys to keep inspiring each other on the defensive end," Brooks said. "I told them to help their teammates out when they needed help and I felt they did that extremely well tonight. We have improved in that area for the past few years, but tonight was really good." NOTES: Parker (shin bruise) was questionable, but started and played 33 minutes. He had eight assists while shooting 6 for 14. ... Entering Saturdays game, the Thunder were averaging 109.9 points during their eight-game winning streak and shooting 50.2 per cent. ... Popovich was whistled for a technical foul after complaining to official Monty McCutchen about a non-call on Tiago Splitters dunk attempt against Ibaka. Chicago Bears Jerseys . The 24-year-old Raley was 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA for Chicago in his first two career starts after being called up from Iowa on Aug. 7. He was optioned to Iowa on Monday after losing 3-0 to Cincinnati in Chicago on Sunday. Jerrell Freeman Jersey .com) - Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson lost an appeal to have his indefinite suspension overturned, the NFL announced Friday.Most Senators fans are still reeling from Saturday nights epic collapse against the Montreal Canadiens, when their team became the first in NHL history to lose a game in which they had a three-goal lead in the final five minutes. The loss was painful on so many levels and seemed to put a definitive nail in the coffin when it came to the Senators playoff chances. And while its easy to point to that loss as the one that killed the teams post-season hopes, it was merely the final straw in a season-long string of disappointments. That collapse against Montreal was spectacular and historic (for the wrong reasons), but it wasnt an anomaly when it comes to the 2013-14 Ottawa Senators. On too many occasions this season, this team squandered opportunities to get two points – either settling for one or being blanked altogether. Here is a look at the 10 games that will likely cost the Senators a playoff spot this season: 1) October 5th – 5-4 shootout loss at TOR Just 24 hours after shutting out the Buffalo Sabres in the season opener, the Senators jumped out to a 4-2 lead against the Maple Leafs midway through the second period. But with time running out in that frame, Joffrey Lupul scored a goal to pull the Leafs to within one goal heading into the third period. And in what would become an eerie preview of what to expect defensively throughout the season, the Senators would allow the Leafs to tie the game – and then win it in a shootout. 2) November 1st – 5-4 shootout loss vs NYI The Senators managed to blow a two-goal lead twice in this game, squandering 2-0 and 4-2 advantages. And knowing what we know about the 2013-14 New York Islanders now, this loss looks even more ridiculous in hindsight. Adding to the lunacy of this night was the fact the Senators surrendered 57 shots on goal to New York. Thats not a typo. 3) December 10th – 2-1 shootout loss at BUF Granted, the Senators played the night before and beat the Philadelphia Flyers in a spirited shootout on home ice. But the Sens looked pretty average against the NHLs worst team the very next night and managed to score only a single goal. The offensive malaise even extended into the shootout, which required 10 rounds before the Sabres eventually won it. 4) December 19th – 4-2 loss vs FLA This was another costly loss to an Eastern Conference lightweight – only it was more damaging because it occurred in regulation time. The Senators led this game 2-1 after the first period and should have been sparked by a brilliant highlight reel goal from Jason Spezza. Instead, the Panthers scored twice in the final 2:32 of the game to stun the Sens with a 4-2 victory. Ottawa was on the power play with a chance to tie the game in the final 90 seconds, but allowed a 2-on-1 the other way and Tomas Kopecky buried them with a shorthanded goal. 55) December 21st – 4-3 overtime loss vs PHX Former Senator Antoine Vermette killed the Senators in this matinee game, as he scored a hat trick – which was capped off with the overtime winner. Tarik Cohen Jersey. The Senators actually held a 2-0 lead in this game and also had a 3-2 advantage with under three minutes to play in the third period. This game may have been the best microcosm for the Sens penchant for sloppiness in afternoon games. 6) January 8th – 4-3 overtime loss at COL Once again, the Senators were less than three minutes away from a regulation time victory, only to have disaster strike. Paul Stastny scored the tying goal with just over two minutes left and then Tyson Barrie scored the overtime winner 33 seconds into the extra frame. The Sens allowed two goals in the span of about three minutes with the game on the line. Instead of skating out of Denver with two points, they had to settle for just one. 7) January 16th – 5-4 overtime loss vs MTL You can actually make a sound argument that the Senators were fortunate to take one point out of this game, considering the Habs jumped out to an early 3-0 lead. But Ottawa fought back with four straight goals and appeared to be in complete command of this game – until Jared Cowen accidentally put the puck into his own net after Craig Anderson stopped Tomas Plekanec on a breakaway. PK Subban then scored just 23 seconds into overtime, with a celebration that seemed to irk the Sens. Sadly, this was not the most painful 5-4 overtime loss they would endure against the Habs this season. 8) February 1st – 6-3 loss at TOR In a case of déjà vu, the Senators once again found themselves with a two-goal lead at the Air Canada Centre – only to watch it evaporate quickly. The Senators had a 2-0 lead, but Toronto tied the game in the second period, thanks in large part to a controversial play. Nazem Kadri drilled Sens defenseman Cody Ceci behind the net with a hit that many felt was illegal, but play went right on and Kadri took the puck and set up Joffrey Lupul for the tying goal. The Sens never seemed to recover from that turn of events and the Leafs scored four times in the third period to beat Ottawa. 9) March 4th – 3-2 loss at EDM Like every other game on this list, the Senators held the lead – jumping out 1-0 early thanks to a Jason Spezza goal. Fresh off a win at the Heritage Classic in Vancouver two days earlier, the Senators should have had some momentum for this game against the lowly Oilers. Instead – in what turned out to be a damn good audition before the trade deadline – Ales Hemsky scored twice to pace the Oilers to a 3-2 victory. 10) March 15th – 5-4 overtime loss at MTL Its still a little too soon to talk about this game. Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '



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