Oklahoma City Thunder strikes in season-opener
The Oklahoma City Thunder unleashed a 13-0 blast in the final period to start the season with a bang, defeating the new-look Chicago Bulls, 106-95, Wednesday night at the Ford Centre in Oklahoma.
Reigning NBA scoring champion, Kevin Durant, led the Thunder’s surge with his 30 points and six rebounds, while Russell Westbrook had an emphatic season debut as he scored 28 points, grabbed
10 rebounds, and dished out six assists.
The 22-year old forward, Durant, who was named as the Most Valuable Player in the 2010 FIBA World Basketball Championship that was dominated by Team USA, was impressed with their performance
on the defensive end of the floor against a team loaded with potent scorers.
"We're a defensive team. That comes first, and defence is going to lead to offence," Durant said. "That's the only thing we was worrying about in the fourth quarter was playing defence, and
we did a good job of getting stops. That made it easier for us on the offensive end."
Thabo Sefolosha only had one point, but he made an impact with his defence especially in the crucial stage of the game, limiting the production of Bulls superstar Derrick Rose down the stretch.
Sefolosha also blocked two crucial shots by Rose and Luol Deng, which could have tied the game in the final five minutes of the game.
"It's big. Of course, it's just one out of 82, and we'll see how it goes," said Sefolosha on their season-opening win. "But that definitely gives us confidence. Especially winning it this
way, with the defence, I think that's big for us."
Rose finished the game with 28 points, but he only scored four points in the final 21 minutes, as the Bulls started to struggle with their offensive sets, especially in the final period,
spoiling Tim Thibodeau’s coaching debut.
"You can't have blown sets in the fourth quarter," said Thibodeau, who was named as the Bulls' head coach after firing Vinny Del Negro during the off-season. "I think that's where you have
to be at your best. You have to be able to execute under pressure, and we'll do better. We have to do better."
Joakim Noah, who had a breakout year last season, racked up 18 points and game-high 19 rebounds, second-year forward Taj Gibson, who started in place of injured star Carlos Boozer, had 16
points and 11 rebounds for the Bulls, who added eight new players during the summer.
The all-star power forward, Boozer, was the Bulls’ prized-recruit in the off-season, but the eight-year NBA veteran broke his right hand, which will sideline him for at least eight weeks.
Oklahoma City was aggressive all-game long, forcing the Bulls to commit a lot of fouls, which gave them 25 more free-throw attempts than the Bulls and they took advantage of it as they converted
38 of the 47 attempts from the 15-foot line.
"It's all about us being aggressive," Durant said. "We're an aggressive, athletic, quick team and getting to the rim is one of our strong points. We've got to continue to get there."
The Thunder will gun for their second-straight win when they go up against the Detroit Pistons on Friday, while the Bulls will try to bounce back on Saturday, also against the Pistons.
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