MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Russell Westbrook fell a rebound short of a historic triple-double Wednesday night, but he scored 45 points, including a late 3-pointer that helped seal the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 103-100 victory against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Westbrook’s 3-pointer – his eighth in the game – with 14 seconds left and two free throws in the final second gave the Thunder their second straight win Oklahoma City solidified its hold on the Western Conference’s sixth seed, holding a 31/2-game lead over the Grizzlies.
Westbrook had 10 assists and nine rebounds, leaving him tied with Oscar Robertson’s 55-year-old record for triple-doubles in a season with 41.
Victor Oladipo scored 15 points, and Doug McDermott and Enes Kanter added 10 apiece.
Marc Gasol led Memphis with 23 points, and Zach Randolph had 20 points and nine rebounds.
HEAT 112, HORNETS 99: Goran Dragic scored 33 points, and Miami made 21 3-pointers at Charlotte, North Carolina, to pull back into a tie for eighth place in the Eastern Conference.
James Johnson shot 6 of 7 from 3-point range and had 26 points, and Hassan Whiteside had a strong second half, finishing with 13 points and 20 rebounds as the Heat dealt a near-fatal blow to Charlotte’s playoff hopes. The loss dropped the 10th-place Hornets two games behind the Heat and Indiana with three games remaining.
Miami holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over Indiana for the final spot in the East.
RAPTORS 105, PISTONS 102: Kyle Lowry had 27 points and 10 assists in his return from a wrist injury, and Toronto rallied at Auburn Hills, Michigan.
Back in the lineup after missing 18 games, Lowry helped the Raptors overcame a 20-point first-half deficit. Toronto moved a half-game ahead of Washington for third place in the East.
Jonas Valanciunas had 11 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter for Detroit, and Ish Smith and Tobias Harris finished with 16 points each.
ROCKETS 110, NUGGETS 104: James Harden scored 31 points and Houston squandered a big early lead at home, but held on to a win that secured the third seed in the Western Conference.
The Nuggets cut the lead to two points on a layup by Nikola Jokic with 1:20 remaining. A 3-pointer by Harden a few seconds later pushed the lead to 106-101.
LAKERS 102, SPURS 95: Tyler Ennis had 19 points in place of the injured starter D’Angelo Russell, and Los Angeles never trailed at San Antonio, Texas.
The Lakers led by as many as 26 points in snapping an eight-game skid against the Spurs.
NOTES
HAWKS: Small forward Thabo Sefolosha isn’t ready to return from his right groin strain and missed his sixth straight game Thursday night at home against Boston.
The Hawks, who have lost 9 of 11 to fall to sixth in the Eastern Conference playoff standings, have had two other starters, Paul Millsap and Kent Bazemore, make recent returns from injuries.
KNICKS: Derrick Rose has had his latest knee surgery and the team said he could resume basketball activities in three weeks.
Rose had arthroscopic surgery to repair torn cartilage in his left knee. He’s been plagued by knee problems in recent years and has had surgery on both knees.
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