Thunder beat Bulls, Clippers see 11-game winning streak ended.
There were seven games on the NBA schedule on Monday night, with the Oklahoma City Thunder arguably picking up the win of the night on the road at the Chicago Bulls.
Kevin Durant took the plaudits for his performance as he scored 35 points along with 12 rebounds to lead the Thunder to victory, while the Bulls were left to rue missing out on taking advantage of what looked to be a vulnerable rival after their big loss to Dallas.
Joakim Noah flirted with another triple double as he ended the game with nine points, 12 rebounds and nine assists, but it wasn’t enough to help Chicago avoid falling to 37-30 for the season.
Meanwhile Oklahoma City improve to 49-18 as they look to put pressure on the San Antonio Spurs at the top of the Western Conference, although they do remain a game-and-a-half adrift.
Elsewhere in the East, the Brooklyn Nets picked up another win by defeating the Phoenix Suns, but despite 28 points from Deron Williams, it was Gerald Green who stole the limelight as he had three plays in the top 10 plays of the night.
While the win will undoubtedly be more important, Green has snapped out of his malaise and is back on form, with the Suns hoping to bounce back collectively to continue their push for a playoff spot.
For Brooklyn, they are now 8-2 in their last 10 games and safe in their recovery to secure a place in the playoffs.
The Indiana Pacers were also celebrating a win on Monday with a home win over the Philadelphia 76ers, as the visitors have now lost a record 21 games in a row.
Paul George had 24 points and eight rebounds while Lance Stephenson added 25 points as the Pacers improve to 50-17 atop the Eastern Conference, while the Sixers are now just two games better off than the Milwaukee Bucks at the bottom of the standings.
However, it wasn’t such a good night for the Los Angeles Clippers who saw their 11-game winning streak come to an end in Denver, with the Nuggets rallying behind 18 points and 16 rebounds from Kenneth Faried.
NBA Results:
Atlanta Hawks 97-83 Charlotte Bobcats
Philadelphia 76ers 90-99 Indiana Pacers
Phoenix Suns 95-108 Brooklyn Nets
Oklahoma City Thunder 97-85 Chicago Bulls
Utah Jazz 86-124 Houston Rockets
Boston Celtics 89-94 Dallas Mavericks
Los Angeles Clippers 100-110 Denver Nuggets
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