National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Oklahoma City 149, Minnesota 140
When: 8:00 PM ET, Friday, March 23, 2012
Where: Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Officials: #17 Joe Crawford, #61 Courtney Kirkland, #58 Josh Tiven
Attendance: 18203

THUNDER 149, TIMBERWOLVES 140 (2OT): Russell Westbrook scored nine of his career-high 45 points in the second overtime as host Oklahoma City withstood Kevin Love's 51 points to beat Minnesota for the 11th consecutive time.

Kevin Durant added 40 points and a season-high 17 rebounds as the Thunder won back-to-back games for the first time since March 7.

Love set a franchise record and a career high with the 51 points and added 14 rebounds.

Timberwolves point guard J.J. Barea also turned in a spectacular effort, recording a triple-double with 25 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds.

The Thunder erased a five-point deficit in the final 46 seconds of the first overtime, getting a tying 3-pointer from Durant with 10.1 seconds left.

Durant seemingly had won the game in regulation when he buried a 3-pointer with 3.9 seconds left in regulation, only to see Love drilled a tying shot from behind the arc with one second left to force overtime.

James Harden added 25 points for the Thunder. Anthony Tolliver scored 23 for the Timberwolves, who went 2-5 on their seven-game road trip.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Love broke Kevin Garnett's franchise record of 47 points set in the 2004-05 season. ... Oklahoma City won back-to-back games for the first time since March 5 and 7. The Thunder tied Miami for the league lead in home wins with 21. ... Timberwolves starting center Nikola Pekovic (ankle) and backup forward Michael Beasley (toe) sat out. Pekovic was hurt in Wednesday's game at San Antonio and was sent back to Minnesota. ... Rookie point guard Ricky Rubio, who underwent surgery this week for two torn ligaments in his left knee, is expected to be sidelined for six to nine months.
Top Game Performances
 
Minnesota   Oklahoma City
Kevin Love 51 Scoring Russell Westbrook 45
Jose Juan Barea 14 Assists James Harden 6
Kevin Love 14 Rebounds Kevin Durant 17
Kevin Love 12 Free Throws Made Russell Westbrook 9
Jose Juan Barea 3 Steals Nick Collison 3
Wesley Johnson 1 Blocks Serge Ibaka 5
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Minnesota 140 49.0 14-36 28-36 24 43 4 6 17
Oklahoma City 149 53.1 10-27 19-20 24 50 7 12 13
Upcoming Games
  • Oklahoma City will play their next game at home against Miami. The Thunder have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
  • Minnesota will play their next game at home against Denver. The Timberwolves have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.