By Michael Doutey
The Oklahoma City Thunder won their 5th straight game Friday night with a 121-113 win over the Los Angeles Clippers inside the Chesapeake Energy Arena. The win kicked off a 12 games gauntlet where the Thunder face 11 straight playoff teams or teams who are competing to get into the playoffs until the final game of the season where OKC hosts the ever tanking Memphis Grizzlies. It was a must win for OKC, and after a slow start in the first quarter, the Thunder had control of the game and stoned any and all Clippers runs. It was an impressive win, but things get much tougher starting in the Thunder’s next game. Here are tonight’s five observations from OKC’s win.
1. Corey Brewer and then some more Corey Brewer
The Corey Brewer experience is alive and well. Brewer lead the Thunder in scoring with 22 points on 7-12 shooting, 2-4 from three and 6-7 from the free throw line. Brewer was a menace in transition. He was able to get out and run with Russell Westbrook. He might be the only guy in the league who can run with Russ. There was a spurt in the second quarter where either Brewer or Adams were beating the Clippers down the floor for easy points or were fouled and send to the free throw line. Brewer was excellent on defense, grabbing a career high six steals. He was everywhere tonight and his production is seemingly becoming something the Thunder can count on.
2. Russ notches his 22nd Triple-Double of the season
Russ was pretty good Friday night. He struggled shooting, scoring 16 points on 7-17 shooting and he took and missed one three. But he did a great job on the boards, grabbing 10 rebounds which he used to get out on the fast break finding Steven Adams and Brewer who ran the floor really well. Russ dished out 11 assists compared to six turnovers. The turnovers were high, but I can think of three off the top of my head that were unforced. But this marks the 4th straight games with a triple-double. Sure, he isn’t shooting well, but he is doing other things really well and finding ways to still attack the basket.
3. Bench Mob continues 
The Thunder bench continues to play well. The bench combined for 37 points, lead by rookie wing Terrance Ferguson who scored 12 points, flashing his athleticism with an impressive dunk and nailed 2-4 threes. The bench shot well from three, shooting 6-14 from behind the arc. Patrick Patterson had a really solid games, scoring 8 points on 2-4 three point shooting. Raymond Felton really played well, scoring 9 points and dished out 4 assists and had zero turnovers. Jerami Grant only played 10 minutes for some reason, but he scored 6 points on 3-4 shooting. Another really solid night from OKC’s bench mob.
4. PG flashed all-around game
PG really struggled shooting in the first half, but turned it on in the second. He ended up scoring 19 points on 6-13 shooting. He shot decent from three, 2-6 from deep. But he did an excellent job of being a play maker, as he had 7 assists and had three turnovers. PG also grabbed 7 rebounds and gathered 3 steals. He was just good overall, even if his three point shooting isn’t where he’s like it. But this was one of the best games he’s played in a few weeks.
5. Melo StruggledÂ
Carmelo has shot the ball well lately, but he struggled Friday night. He shot just 3-11 from the field, including 2-7 from three. He scored just 9 total points, but he did hit a key three down the stretch. Melo was bailed out by the play of Corey Brewer. The Big 3 are struggling to shoot well, so he needs to pick it up. But he has shot well before last night.
The Thunder now move to 42-29 on the season as OKC has now won five straight games, something Gideon Hamilton correctly predicted five games ago. Now things get real, as OKC faces the Raptors on Sunday afternoon in Toronto. Tip starts at noon inside the Air Canada Centre.
