OKC Thrashes Suns Behind Season-Best Games For Perkins, Sefolosha

Kendrick Perkins had his best offensive performance in a Thunder uniform and OKC shot 66.9 percent from 3-point range in a dominant win against Phoenix.

Friday, February 8th 2013, 10:56 pm

By: News 9


Four Thunder starters scored in double figures on Friday night and one of the players who did  probably isn't who you'd think.

That's right, Kendrick Perkins scored what was not only a season-best 17 points, but also his best offensive performance in a Thunder uniform as Oklahoma City obliterated Phoenix 127-96 at Chesapeake Energy Arena.

Perkins was highly-efficient for OKC on both sides of the court, shooting 8-for-9 from the floor and collecting nine rebounds while also shutting down Suns' center Marcin Gortat. Gortat finished with only two points and five rebounds.

Perk was not the only Thunder player with a season-best outing, as Thabo Sefolosha scored a season-high 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including 4-of-6 from the 3-point line.

The Thunder started off the game by hitting its first six shots from the floor but Phoenix was able to stay in the fight early. A breakaway slam by Serge Ibaka gave OKC a five-point lead heading into halftime.

But as soon as the third quarter started, so did the domination.

OKC (38-12) controlled the quarter on both sides of the court, outscoring Phoenix 36-20 in the period for a commanding 21-point advantage. The Thunder had a stretch of defensive dominance in the third where it went on a 21-0 run as it held Phoenix scoreless from the 9:27 mark until 3:07 remained in the period.

For the game, OKC shot 57.5 percent from the floor and a gaudy 66.7 percent (14-21) from the 3-point line. No Thunder player shot under 50 percent from behind the arc.

Kevin Durant was his usual efficient self, scoring a team-high 21 points on just 11 shots, highlighted by a 4-for-5 outing from 3 and 7-of-7 from the foul line. KD is shooting 80 percent from 3-point range during OKC's three-game winning streak.

Durant also chipped in six rebounds and four assists in 31 minutes of action.

Russell Westbrook played just 25 minutes but did a lot of damage in them, scoring 17 points on 8-of-14 shooting to go with six assists, five rebounds, two steals and a block.

Kevin Martin dropped 16 points off the bench on 5-of-10 shooting while Ibaka added nine points and three blocks.

All 13 players who saw the floor for the Thunder scored, but things weren't as rosey for the Suns.

While OKC had four starters score at least 17 points, Phoenix (17-34) only had one starter reach double figures with Goran Dragic's 19. The other four Phoenix starters combined to score 11 points on 5-of-17 shooting as Oklahoma City's offensive gave them nothing all night.

If it wasn't for Michael Beasley's 25 points off the bench, this game could have gotten really ugly on the plains.

The victory marked the ninth straight for OKC against the Suns and the Thunder's third in a row overall. OKC can go for the four-game season sweep of Phoenix on Sunday when the teams play again at 7 p.m. at U.S. Airways Arena.

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