Kevin Durant's jumper may very well be back this season, and opponents ought to worry. Durant scored 43 points on 11-19 shooting against one of the best defenses in the league as the Oklahoma City Thunder punished the New Orleans Hornets 104-93.
Hornets Vs. Thunder: Kevin Durant’s 43 Gives Oklahoma City The Win, Tiebreaker Over New Orleans
Durant's three-point shooting is 35 percent this year, down from 36.5 percent last year and 42.2 percent in 2009. But he hit 5-7 from range on Wednesday to bolster his point total. He scored about 1.8 points per shot attempt when you include free throws, just an insane level of production that helped make up for meager totals from his teammates. Russell Westbrook scored 10 points on 3-7 shooting. Starting two-guard James Harden had seven points, and Jeff Green shot 5-14. Serge Ibaka had 12 rebounds and six blocks off the bench.
The Hornets simply couldn't contain Durant, and had trouble getting many easy baskets of their own. Chris Paul had just five assists on the game, and scored 15. David West did well against Green, finishing with 20 points and 15 rebounds (despite relatively inefficient shooting). But the Hornets got little else, and Jason Smith couldn't continue his excellence in replacement of injured Emeka Okafor.
The win gives Oklahoma City a tiebreaker advantage over the Hornets should the teams have identical records at season’s end. The Thunder took the season series 3-1.
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