LOS ANGELES — Paul George had a 47-point triple-double, and Russell Westbrook set an NBA record for consecutive triple-doubles as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the visiting Portland Trail Blazers 120-111 on Monday night.
George’s 3-pointer with 3:52 to play came on the 10th assist by Westbrook, who clinched his 10th consecutive triple-double. Westbrook finished with 21 points, 14 rebounds, and 11 assists.
Going into the game, Westbrook and Wilt Chamberlain were the only players in NBA history with nine consecutive triple-doubles. Chamberlain set the mark in 1968.
However, it was George who drew “MVP” chants as the game wound down, as he contributed 12 rebounds and 10 assists to go along with his point tally. George has scored 92 points over the last two games.
It was George’s third career triple-double and his first since 2014. He capped off the triple-double in the final minute with a pass to Westbrook for a 3-pointer, the last of treys for Oklahoma City.
The win was the fourth consecutive and 11th in 12 games for the Thunder. It also clinched the season series for Oklahoma City, which is 3-0 with one meeting left.
The Trail Blazers took their third loss in four games.
Damian Lillard led Portland with 31 points, making 8 of 12 from the field in the second half as the Trail Blazers cut what was a 20-point deficit down to as little as five.
Oklahoma City was short-handed, playing without starting forward Jerami Grant and backup point guard Dennis Schroder. Grant missed the game after sustaining a right ankle sprain late in the Thunder’s win at Houston on Saturday. Schroder missed the game due to a personal issue.
The players who took over the majority of the missing regulars’ minutes had a big impact early.
Raymond Felton, playing in Schroder’s role and appearing in a game for the first time since Dec. 30, scored 15 first-half points on six-of-seven shooting. Felton had not scored more than 12 points all season. He missed all three of his second-half shots and did not score after the break.
Deonte Burton, a rookie getting added playing time off the bench with Grant out, scored a season-high 18 points. His previous best was 11 points, and he hadn’t scored a point since Dec. 3
ANTETOKOUNMPO DOES IT ALL AS BUCKS BEAT BULLS
Giannis Antetokounmpo returned from a one-game rest to score a game-high 29 points Monday night, leading the Milwaukee Bucks to a 112-99 victory over the Chicago Bulls in Chicago.
The win was the Bucks’ third straight over the Bulls this season after Milwaukee had taken victories by 19 and three points at home in November.
Antetokounmpo was a healthy scratch from Saturday’s 103-83 home loss to Orlando. He returned with his fifth straight game with 29 or more points, a stretch during which he has averaged 33.6 points per game.
The Bucks led by just one at halftime before using 7-0 and 8-0 scoring bursts early in the third period to go up by as much as 65-53.
Milwaukee retained a 79-71 lead at period’s end, then held on as Chicago closed within 100-97 on two free throws by Lauri Markkanen with 2:55 to play.
Eric Bledsoe countered with a 3-pointer and added two free throws 55 seconds later to help the Bucks pull away.
Antetokounmpo hit nine of his 13 shots and completed a double-double with a game-high-tying 17 rebounds. He also led the Bucks with eight assists.
Bledsoe (19 points), Malcolm Brogdon (17), Khris Middleton (16) and Ersan Ilyasova (12) also scored in double figures for Milwaukee, which has won six straight on the road.
The Bucks outshot the Bulls 47.5 percent to 38.5 and enjoyed a 24-16 advantage in free-throw points.
Zach LaVine had a team-high 27 points for the Bulls, who lost their 11th straight at home.
The scoring total was LaVine’s 24th this season of 25 or more points and his fourth in a row. He had scored 28, 26 and 26 in his previous three games.
Lauri Markkanen had a 20-point, 17-rebound double-double for Chicago, while Otto Porter Jr. had 18 points and Robin Lopez 17.
HARDEN’S 30-POINT STREAK HITS 30 AS ROCKETS TOP MAVS
Hampered by a strained left shoulder, James Harden nearly had his streak of consecutive 30-point games come to an end before coming alive down the stretch as the host Houston Rockets defeated the Dallas Mavericks 120-104 Monday.
Harden finished with a game-high 31 points on nine-for-23 shooting and rounded out his stat line with eight rebounds, seven assists and five steals.
The Rockets relied on a collective effort to build a lead against Dallas, with four others scoring in double figures, including guard Gerald Green, who poured in 19 points in 22 minutes off the bench while drilling five of eight 3-pointers.
After the Mavericks sliced what was once a 21-point deficit to 109-100 on a Jalen Brunson 3-pointer with 2:52 left to play, Harden drilled back-to-back treys to mute the rally.
Harden added two free throws and then hit another 3-pointer with 52.9 seconds left to give him 31 points and extend his streak to 30 games, the third-longest in NBA history.
Harden has paced the Rockets in scoring in every game since Dec. 1, a span of 35 contests.
Eric Gordon scored 18 points, while Chris Paul and Kenneth Faried added 17 apiece for the Rockets. Paul finished with 11 assists, moving past Hall of Fame guard Gary Payton for eighth place in league history. — Reuters
