A Purrr-Fect Night In OKC As Thunder Squashes Bobcats

If you listen closely, you can hear the sound of the Bobcats coughing up another hairball.

Oklahoma City held Charlotte to a miserable 29 percent shooting Monday night en route to a laughable 114-69 win.

Jeffery Taylor, a rookie second-round pick, was Charlotte's only double-figure scorer with 10. Reggie Williams and Ben Gordon each added nine points for the Cats.

The Thunder had six players reach double-digits, led by Kevin Durant's 18. OKC got 12 points and 11 assists from Russell Westbrook and Hasheem Thabeet added a double-double himself, scoring 13 points and snagging 10 boards.

OKC held a 64-24 halftime lead, the largest for any NBA team since 1991 and the fifth-largest in the shot clock era. When Kevin Martin hit a 3-pointer with 5:46 remaining in the third quarter, the Thunder took an unbelievable 82-29 advantage, a score that almost looked like a misprint.

What makes this one all the more amazing is this isn't the same porous Bobcats squad that set the NBA record for lowest single-season winning percentage last year. Charlotte entered Monday's game with a 7-5 record, having already matched last season's win total (7-59).

The large scoring margin allowed the Thunder starters to get some rest and the bench to get some valuable playing time. OKC had 12 players get double-digit minutes and had no player shoot more than nine shots.

Next up for the Thunder is one of the most anticipated games of the season. James Harden leads his Houston Rockets (6-7) into Oklahoma City, accompanied by former OU coach Kelvin Sampson, who is acting as Houston's interim coach.