En Fuego: Thunder Rips Nets In Brooklyn

Kevin Durant's 30-point streak might have come to an end on Friday night but the Thunder kept rolling along with a 120-95 demolition of the Brooklyn Nets, highlighted by ridiculous shooting nights from KD and Serge Ibaka.

Friday, January 31st 2014, 11:18 pm

By: News 9


Friday night's national telecast of the Thunder's tilt with the Brooklyn Nets led off with a video montage set to the Imagine Dragons' hit "On Top Of The World."

It would be hard to find a more fitting anthem for Kevin Durant and this Oklahoma City team the past few weeks.

Durant kept up his torrid shooting and the Thunder ran Brooklyn out of its own gym en route to a dominating 120-95 victory and its 10th-consecutive win overall.

However, the beat down might have proved to be a little too thorough.

Records came down left and right in this blowout, as OKC set a franchise record for field-goal percentage (63.6), consecutive field goals without a miss my a single player (Ibaka 12-for-12), matched the second-longest winning streak in Thunder history (10) and held Brooklyn to an NBA record low of 17 total rebounds in a game.

But with all those records, one came to an unfortunate end as a direct result of the Thunder's dominance: KD's 30-point streak.

The third-longest run of 30-point games in the past 35 years wasn't derailed at the 12-game mark because of an off-shooting night; it ended because Oklahoma City was simply too good.

For the majority of this contest it felt like OKC couldn't miss and in Serge Ibaka's case he literally didn't, helping to send the starters to the bench for good after just three quarters of play.

Durant did his fair share of damage in those three quarters, finishing with 26 points on a ridiculous 10-of-12 shooting clip, including 3-for-3 from 3-point range. He also had seven assists, three rebounds and at least five "ooh" and "ahh" moments from the Brooklyn crowd, as he scored 22 of his 26 in the first half in a variety of ways that showcased just how incredible he's been in 2014.

And sitting out the final quarter in a lopsided victory was perfectly fine with Durant, who said after the game that he was glad the streak was over so some of the attention would shift to his teammates.

And there is someone who deserves to bask in a little of that shared spotlight: Ibaka.

For as lethal as KD was, he didn't even have the hottest hand on his own team. The previously mentioned individual record for shots without a miss was set by Ibaka on Friday night.

No. 9 finished a perfect 12-for-12 from the field and a healthy portion of those makes didn't come easily, as Ibaka sank a handful of fadeaway jumpers over Kevin Garnett. Ibaka finished with 25 points and nine rebounds.

The starting backcourt of Reggie Jackson and Thabo Sefolosha chipped in 14 points a piece, while Jeremy Lamb added 12 and Perry Jones scored 11 off the bench in one of the most well-rounded team victories of the season.

And that high level of team play isn't hard to see in the box score. OKC shot 63.6 percent to Brooklyn's 47.3, outrebounded the Nets 41-17, had 28 assists to Brooklyn's 18, and had a 58-30 edge in points in the paint. OKC's 63.6 percent shooting was not only the franchise record, but is also the highest mark in the NBA this season.

The Nets had no answer for Oklahoma City's potent offensive attack. In fact, three of OKC's top scorers on the night -- Durant, Ibaka and Lamb -- finished with 63 points on an eye-popping 27-of-30 shooting. The Thunder got what it wanted when it wanted it, winning this game almost effortlessly.

Former Thunder reserve Shaun Livingston led Brooklyn (20-24) with 16 points, while Deron Williams added 14 off the bench.

Brooklyn had been one of the NBA's hottest teams entering the game, having posted a 10-2 mark in January prior to Friday's loss.

The Thunder (38-10) increased their lead in the Western Conference standing to a full four game above the second-place Spurs and Blazers, who are both 33-13 on the season.

Oklahoma City will go for its 11th-straight win in rapid fashion on Saturday when it heads to Washington to face the Wizards at 6 p.m. on the tail end of a back-to-back.

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