Harden, Rockets' supporting cast manage win despite Westbrook's huge night
HOUSTON — The NBA’s latest MVP showdown did not disappoint. And in the end, it had a whole lot more to do with the supporting casts that surround Russell Westbrook and James Harden than it did the superstars themselves.
Despite Westbrook finishing with 49 points, the Oklahoma City Thunder star didn’t score for most of the final two minutes while his Houston Rockets counterpart needed some help from veteran big man Nene at the finish. Harden, who had 26 points, 12 assists, and eight rebounds, was double-teamed high above the arc and fired a pass to Nene down low. He was fouled by Jerami Grant, then hit two free throws with 0.7 seconds left to seal it.
Nene, who came to the Rockets as a free agent in the offseason, finished with 18 points on 6-of-6 shooting.
“Russell was unbelievable tonight,” said first-year Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni, whose team is now 28-9 and within one game of the San Antonio Spurs for second place in the Western Conference. “He made some unbelievable shots. And James was James … almost a triple-double again. Both of them are in the running for the MVP, and rightly so. They’re great players.”
Great as they are, it came down to which star had more help.
Rockets guard Eric Gordon continued his strong case to be the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year, finishing with 22 points (five of 10 on three-pointers). In this post-Kevin Durant landscape world in which Westbrook works, Victor Oladipo is the closest thing he has to a worthy sidekick. Oladipo (17 points on six of 16 shooting) struggled for most of the night, but his three-pointer with 1:54 left gave the Thunder the 116-114 lead after they trailed by as many as 14 in the fourth quarter.
Thunder guard Andre Roberson did yeoman’s work against Harden, too, holding him to six of 16 shooting and shocking the Toyota Center crowd with his block of a Harden three-point attempt with 24.6 seconds left. After an all-alone Harden took his time releasing from the right wing after a perfect Gordon pass, the athletic and lengthy Roberson closed the gap and tipped the ball.
Westbrook missed his chance to hit a possible game-winner not long after, missing a three-pointer from the right wing with Harden guarding him with 3.8 seconds left. In three games guarding Harden this season, Roberson has helped hold him to 16 of 55 shooting overall (29%).
The Thunder (21-16, seventh in the West) led 31-17 in the first quarter, with Westbrook getting the early lead (15 points on six of seven shooting) for the team that fell in Charlotte on Wednesday night (the Rockets had two days off leading into this game). But the Rockets launched from there, pulling ahead by as many 18 points midway through the third quarter.
This was Round 3 this season between these two teams.
- The Thunder won 105-103 on Nov. 16, with Westbrook finishing with 30 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and Harden struggling in a 12-point (four of 16 shooting), 13-assist, seven-rebound night.
- The Rockets won 102-99 on Dec. 9, with Westbrook capping his string of seven consecutive triple-doubles (27 points on eight of 25 shooting, 10 assists and 10 rebounds) and Harden finishing with 21 points (six of 23 shooting), 12 assists and nine rebounds.
Follow Sam Amick on Twitter @Sam_Amick.