Russell Westbrook scores 29, Thunder blow out Bobcats
The Charlotte Bobcats struggled to make buckets, finishing 25-87 (28.7%), including 5-24 (20.8%) from three-point range, as they were blown out by Oklahoma City Thunder, 98-75. Oklahoma City (15-16) has now won seven of their last 10 games.
Russell Westbrook had another strong performance, scoring 29 points on 11-21 shooting from the field and 6-6 from the free throw line. Serge Ibaka also chipped in for Oklahoma City, finishing with 13 points and 14 rebounds. On 5-9 shooting, including 3-5 from behind the arc, Brian Roberts scored 17 points off the bench for Charlotte in the loss.
As expected, the Bobcats offense did not have its best game, struggling to make shots against a Thunder defense that ranks fourth-best in the league at forcing misses (46.8% opponents' eFG%). After finishing with an eFG% of 31.6% in this game, they rank 27th in the NBA in that metric at 46.7% this season. The Bobcats posted an eFG% of just 31.6%, including 20.8% from 3-point range. This year, they are 2-5 when they record marks below 45% and 30% in those respective categories. On the other hand, the Thunder are 5-5 when holding their opponents to such low percentages.
Coming up, the Thunder square off with the Dallas Mavericks, who are 21-10 on the season. The Bobcats go up against the Orlando Magic, currently sitting at 11-21 this year. The Bobcats are 0-1 versus Orlando this season.
