DENVER – First, Russell Westbrook broke Oscar Robertson’s record for most triple-doubles in a season. Then, he broke the Denver Nuggets’ hearts.
Westbrook’s 36-foot dagger at the buzzer gave Oklahoma City a 106-105 victory, eliminating the Nuggets from playoff contention and capping a historic Sunday afternoon in which he scored 50 points to go with 16 rebounds and 10 assists.
Westbrook’s 42nd triple-double is one more than the “Big O” had for the Cincinnati Royals in 1961-62, a mark that many in the NBA had considered unbreakable until Westbrook’s incredible run.
In other results, Toronto downed New York, 110-97; Atlanta stunned Cleveland, 126-125, in overtime; Phoenix clobbered Dallas, 124-111; Houston foiled Sacramento, 135-128; Detroit routed Memphis, 103-90; and the Los Angeles Lakers upended the Minnesota Timberwolves, 110-109.
Back in Denver, the crowd gave Westbrook a standing ovation after he broke Robertson’s record with his 10th assist with 4:17 remaining.
Then, those same fans stood in stunned silence after watching Westbrook score his team’s final 15 points, including the game-winner after Steven Adams took the inbound pass from Kyle Single with 2.9 seconds left and dished to Westbrook, whose long jumper ringed through the iron as the horn sounded.
“It was a good defense,” lamented Nuggets guard Gary Harris. “He’s had a hell of a season. I think he might have just locked up the MVP with that one right there.”
Westbrook insisted his buzzer beater wasn’t a low-percentage prayer.
“I practice that shot everyday pregame,” he said.
Same spot. And, he said, usually the same result.
“So, I definitely feel confident in shooting that shot,” he said.
Westbrook had a double-double by halftime but didn’t get his triple-double until feeding Semaj Christon in the right corner for a 3-pointer that pulled the Thunder to 101-91 with more than four minutes left.
With his 10th assist and his record in the books – after four tries at that final assist – Westbrook took care of the scoring himself the rest of the way.
He followed a pair of layups with six free throws – half of them coming after Nikola Jokic was whistled for a flagrant foul and a technical – then added another layup.