Russell Westbrook made 2 free throws with 5.2 seconds left in overtime, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied from 20 points down in the second quarter to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 102-101 in overtime.
The Thunder trailed 39-19 with 10:04 left in the second quarter and 57-46 at halftime. They were still down 101-98 with 13 seconds left in overtime, with a 2.2% chance to win, and outscored the Grizzlies 4-0 the rest of the way.
The Grizzlies had the ball down 1 with 5.2 seconds left, but Carmelo Anthony blocked Tyreke Evans’ 3-pointer, lifting the Thunder’s chance to win from 80% to 98%. It would have put the Grizzlies ahead.
During clutch time, the Thunder outscored the Grizzlies 19-17. Alex Abrines scored 9 of the Thunder’s 19 on 3 for 3 shooting and 0 for 1 at the line. In the fourth quarter and overtime, Marc Gasol had 4 of his 6 assists, 1 of them on a basket by Ben McLemore that tied the game and 1 on a basket by Evans that put the Grizzlies ahead.
Steven Adams had 21 points (14 in the paint) and 9 rebounds. Anthony added 21 points and 9 rebounds. Abrines added a career-high 20 points on 7 for 10 shooting, and Westbrook had 20 points, 11 rebounds and 14 assists but shot 7 for 29, his eighth triple-double of the season. The Thunder had 4 20-point scorers. Westbrook assisted on 6 of Abrines’ 7 baskets, 3 of them in the fourth quarter or overtime.
For the Grizzlies, Evans had 29 points and 13 rebounds, and Gasol added 22 points and 6 assists.
The Grizzlies forced 10 turnovers, about 5 fewer than usual for this many possessions. The Thunder’s starters outscored the Grizzlies 64-54 in 31 minutes together.