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Sports

Durant's 36 points lift Thunder past Pacers 118-94

Kurt Voigt - The Philippine Star

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Kevin Durant had 36 points and 10 rebounds and Oklahoma City turned a matchup of two of the NBA's best teams into a blowout with a 118-94 win over theIndiana Pacers on Sunday night.

The Thunder (15-4) improved to 10-0 at home this season. They are the only Western Conference team to remain undefeated at home.

Durant was 14 of 23 from the field and Oklahoma City shot a season-best 61 percent (47 of 77). Russell Westbrookfinished with 26 points, Reggie Jackson had 15 and Serge Ibaka 13 for the Thunder.

Paul George scored 32 points for the Pacers (18-3), who shot just 40 percent (34 of 85).

Indiana was playing its second game in two nights, having won at San Antonio on Saturday.

The Thunder never trailed on Sunday, leading by as many as 19 points in the first half before pushing the lead to 29 in the third quarter after Steven Adams' three-point play put Oklahoma City up 88-59.

Oklahoma City nearly equaled its season-high of 119 points in the win, falling one point short of what it scored on Nov. 8 against Detroit.

The loss was the worst of the season for last season's Eastern Conference finalists, the Pacers. Their only other losses were a 16-point defeat at Chicago on Nov. 16, and a four-point defeat at Portland on Dec. 2.

Oklahoma City swept the regular-season series with the Pacers last season, and Durant opened the game with a point to prove in the matchup of NBA Finals' hopefuls.

The NBA's leading scorer at 28.5 points per game hit 6 of his first 7 shots in the first quarter, scoring 14 of the Thunder's first 18 points. Oklahoma City led by as many as 14 points in the first quarter, stretching that to 19 points in the second quarter after Jeremy Lamb's 3-pointer put the Thunder up 43-24.

Lamb's 3-pointer capped a 15-4 run for Oklahoma City, all coming from its reserves - led by Jackson's seven point.

The Thunder shot 54.8 percent (23 of 42) in the first half, while Indiana shot just 32.6 percent (15 of 46).

NOTES: Indiana finished a five-game road trip against the Thunder, going 3-2 on the trip with losses to Oklahoma City and Portland. ... The Pacers, who played two of the top Western Conference teams in San Antonio and Oklahoma City in their last two games, return home to face two-time defending NBA champion Miami on Tuesday.

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CITY

EASTERN CONFERENCE

JEREMY LAMB

KEVIN DURANT

OKLAHOMA

OKLAHOMA CITY

OKLAHOMA CITY AND PORTLAND

PAUL GEORGE

POINTS

REGGIE JACKSON

WESTERN CONFERENCE

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