With No Durant Or Westbrook, OKC Still Tops Lakers, 108-101
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Serge Ibaka had 18 points and 14 rebounds, D.J. Augustin added 18 points and nine rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Los Angeles Lakers 108-101 Sunday night without Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.
Enes Kanter had 16 points and 15 rebounds as the Thunder's supporting cast snapped a two-game skid with no help from its superstar duo. Durant is out with a foot injury, and Westbrook underwent surgery on his right cheek Saturday in his native Los Angeles.
Yet the Thunder's role players, backups and newcomers never trailed against the 14th-place Lakers, whose three-game winning streak ended meekly.
Jeremy Lin had 20 points, eight assists and six rebounds for Los Angeles, which got at least eight points from eight players, but couldn't win its season-high fourth straight.
Jordan Hill had 14 points and 12 rebounds while hitting his first career 3-pointer for the Lakers, who played without top scorer Nick Young. He missed his third straight game with a sore left knee.
Oklahoma City went 4-10 earlier in the season when Durant and Westbrook both were sidelined, but the Thunder clawed back into playoff position after their return. They're holding off New Orleans in eighth place in the Western Conference with 22 games to play.
Augustin stepped in for Westbrook as the Thunder's catalyst, and the veteran looked sharp in his sixth game with his sixth NBA team. The Thunder picked him up in a trade with Detroit last month.
Jeremy Lamb added nine of his 14 points in the fourth quarter while Augustin went scoreless. Lamb's 3-pointer with 4:23 to play stretched Oklahoma City's lead to a game-high 14 points, allowing the Thunder to avoid a winless three-game road trip.
Westbrook had triple-doubles in his last three games, but needed surgery after breaking a bone in his face by colliding with teammate Andre Roberson's knee on Friday. Durant hasn't played in six straight games while nursing a broken bone in his right foot.
TIP-INS
Thunder: Augustin hit a 3-pointer from well behind the line at the halftime buzzer. ... Newly acquired forward Steve Novak missed his fourth straight game after an appendectomy. ... Kanter returned from a one-game absence with a thigh bruise to play his fourth game with Oklahoma City.
Lakers: Rookie point guard Jordan Clarkson had 12 points and four assists. He was a San Antonio high school teammate of Roberson, who scored eight points for the Thunder. ... The teams meet again in Oklahoma City on March 24.
UP NEXT
Thunder: Host Philadelphia on Wednesday.
Lakers: At Charlotte on Tuesday.
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