LOS ANGELES — Kevin Durant scored 32 points, Russell Westbrook added 26 and the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 109-97 on Tuesday night in a matchup of teams with the two best records in the NBA.
Serge Ibaka added 17 points before fouling out late while helping the Thunder improve to a league-leading 33-9 and expand their lead in the Western Conference standings to 1½ games over the Clippers, who were without All-Star Chris Paul and fell to 32-11.
Blake Griffin had 31 points and 11 rebounds, and Jamal Crawford added 14 points off the bench. Eric Bledsoe scored 12 points starting in place of Paul, who missed his fourth game because of a bruised right kneecap. He missed three road wins last week, then played the next two games but it was obvious Paul wasn’t himself so he was held out Tuesday.
The Clippers had won four straight at home against the Thunder, and they led much of the first quarter before giving up the lead for good early in the second.
Los Angeles made a run to start the fourth, with Grant Hill and Crawford combining to score seven in a row and close to 82-75. That was as close as the Clippers came in losing their second straight.
Also on Tuesday:
Pistons 105
Magic 90
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Brandon Knight led Detroit with 18 points as the Pistons pulled away to beat Orlando. J.J. Redick was Orlando’s biggest threat, scoring 26 points on nine-for-10 shooting.
Bucks 110
76ers 102
MILWAUKEE — Ersan Ilyasova had 27 points and 16 rebounds, Brandon Jennings scored 25 points and Milwaukee won for the sixth time in eight games since Jim Boylan replaced Scott Skiles as coach.
Cavaliers 95
Celtics 90
CLEVELAND — Kyrie Irving scored 15 of his 40 points in the fourth quarter, including several key late baskets, to help Cleveland get back-to-back home wins for the first time this season.
