MIAMI (AP) — Russell Westbrook got his 15th triple-double of the season by the midpoint of the third quarter, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Miami Heat 106-94 on Tuesday night to extend their winning streak to four games.
Westbrook finished with 29 points, 17 rebounds and 11 assists. He was two rebounds shy of the triple-double at halftime, and now has six before the end of third quarters this season.
Enes Kanter scored 19 and Steven Adams added 15 — including a highlight-reel dunk in the first half — for the Thunder.
ROCKETS 123,
MAVERICKS 107
DALLAS (AP) — James Harden scored 34 points and Houston completed a four-game season sweep of Dallas in a game marred by eight technical fouls.
Harden had 24 points at halftime and finished with 11 assists without playing in the fourth quarter. The Rockets broke a 37-all tie in the second with a 16-0 run and improved to 13-2 in December.
With two games left in the month, Houston can tie the franchise record of 15 wins from November 1996.
Five of the technicals came during the third quarter, and another during the break before the fourth when Houston’s Trevor Ariza was assessed his second technical and ejected.
There were also two flagrant fouls, both against Dallas.
CELTICS 113,
GRIZZLIES 103
BOSTON (AP) — Avery Bradley scored 23 points, Isaiah Thomas had 21 points and seven assists, and Boston held off Memphis.
Gerald Green added a season-high 19 points and Jae Crowder scored 17 for Boston, which won for the sixth time in seven games and beat the Grizzlies for the second time in a week. The Celtics needed overtime and a career-high 44 points from Thomas for a 112-109 win in Memphis last Tuesday.
Marc Gasol had 26 points and nine assists for Memphis. Zach Randolph scored 10 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter to help keep the Grizzlies close and pulled down 10 rebounds. Tony Allen had 17 points and eight rebounds for Memphis, which was coming off a 112-102 loss in Orlando the night before but hung with Boston until the final minute.
Westbrook gets 15th triple-double, Thunder top Heat