Oklahoma City Thunder go up 2-1

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The Oklahoma City Thunder pulled out a victory over the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 3, winning the contest 118-112. The hardwood floor got a little bloody in this tight-wire game as both teams battled it out. MVP Kevin Durant had an amazing night with 36 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists in the game. Russell Westbrook also came up big with 23 points, 13 assists, and 8 rebounds. The duo just couldn’t be stopped, and although the game was close in the first three quarters, the final 12 minutes belonged to the Thunder.

One of the key factors that hurt the Clips in this game was their poor shooting percentage from downtown, as they only connected on 7 out of the 26 shots they took from behind the stripe. They were also outrebounded by 11 boards in Game 3.

Blake Griffin and Chris Paul put in a valiant effort to try and pull out a win in this game, but they simply fell short. They had a great night, but Durant and Westbrook just had a better one. CP3 put up 21 points, 16 assists, and 3 steals. Griffin led the team with 34 points, and also added 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks. Jamal Crawford produced from the bench, not letting his hardware get to him, scoring 20 points. J.J. Redick was a non-factor tonight, only scoring 5 points.

The game was hotly contested, and by the third quarter the cap blew off. Double technicals were called on Matt Barnes and Kendrick Perkins. Perkins stepped up to Barnes, but Westbrook intervened before anything ignited. Griffin took an elbow from Serge Ibaka, receiving a bloody nose with no call to go along with it. It was a gritty game indeed, but that’s the best type of NBA playoff basketball you can get.

“We did a good job of weathering storms throughout the game and sticking together,” Durant told ESPN. “We’re going to have to do that even more next game if we want to win. It’s probably going to be the toughest game of the series.”

Shelly Sterling, Donald Sterling’s estranged wife, was at the game trying to retain her monetary interest in the Clippers.

The lead changed hands 14 times, and there were also seven ties throughout. They’ll have Game 4 at the Staples Center as well on Sunday, May 10, 2014.