Durant Scores Career High As Thunder Slip By Warriors 127-121

Jan 17, 2014; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder small forward Kevin Durant (35) handles the ball against Golden State Warriors small forward Andre Iguodala (9) during the second quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

The Golden State Warriors lost their second game in a row, something that we haven’t seen in a very long time. Tonight was a different case, however, The Oklahoma City Thunder put on an offensive clinic, and whether the Warriors were playing weak defense, or the Thunder were  just that hot still remains to be a question. Friday night, the Warriors fell to OKC by the final score of 127-121.

Kevin Durant, the man that the Warriors had their eyes on, dazzled in this performance tonight. He made almost every shot. From Draymond Green, to Klay Thompson, to Andre Iguodala, there was almost nothing the Warriors could throw at him that he wasn’t expecting. From turnarounds to 3-pointers, to driving layups, Durant showed off the entire arsenal.

Stephen Curry and Thompson, the Splash Brothers really stunned Oklahoma City, pouring in 63 points, 12/19 on 3-pointers, but in the end, Durant’s 54 proved to be too much.

The Warriors never really had control of this game. The lead always floated from about 7-9 points. In the first half, they showed some signs of life. In Jordan Crawford’s debut, he scored 8 points on 3/4 shooting. Of course, he has no idea how he’s going to fit into the Warriors offense, but he seemed to do a good job creating his own shot.

Offensively speaking, the Warriors were more than capable of staying with the Thunder. In a foul-filled game, however, the Thunder continually got to the line and cashed in on 24/33 free throws. The Warriors, on the other hand, got the line just as often, but shot, at a miserable 19/34 at 55%. This was the biggest difference in the game, eventually leading to the OKC victory.

In the fourth quarter, a back-to-back 3’s from Durant and a couple of nice jumpshots iced the game, and the Warriors stood there baffled as a game that they could have had slowly slipped out of reach.

In the last game they played, Denver notched a whopping 123 points. Tonight, the Thunder scored 127 points. No, neither of these games went into overtime. If the Dubs want to get some confidence back, they’re going to have a defensively solid game against the New Orleans Pelicans, accompanied by an overpowering victory.