Jackson Returns But Thunder Burned

The Thunder's walking wounded headed to Brooklyn on Monday night with an extra body in tow. Reggie Jackson returned to the Oklahoma City lineup, but the Brooklyn Nets didn't care. Jackson led OKC with 23 points but the Nets cruised to a 116-82 win.

After playing the season's first three games with an eight-man rotation, Jackson was expected to be No. 9. And he was – until the Thunder's bad voodoo struck again. Starting shooting guard Andre Roberson left the game in the first half with a left foot sprain and did not return.

The Roberson injury was par for the course on Monday night. Brooklyn dominated right out of the gate and never looked back. The Nets outscored OKC 32-19 in the first quarter behind hot shooting and what looked like a tired Thunder roster. Brooklyn outscored Oklahoma City by six in the second and took a 19-point lead into the half.

Nothing changed in the second half as Brooklyn used its 52–percent shooting to extend the lead even further.

Six Nets finished in double-figures, including both Brook Lopez and Alan Anderson who each dropped 18. Deron Williams scored 17 points on just eight shots and dished out nine helpers.

Perry Jones gave OKC another solid performance with 16 points and four rebounds. Serge Ibaka added 15 points and nine boards. Sebastian Telfair played well off the bench, scoring 16 points and handing out six assists.

Kendrick Perkins followed up his 17-point explosion with a scoreless night on 0-3 shooting. Lance Thomas also struggled, scoring two points on 1-10 shooting.

Oklahoma City shot just 39 percent and committed 17 turnovers. Brooklyn outscored the Thunder 46-36 in the paint and 20-9 on the fast break.

The Thunder (1-3) is back at it in Toronto on Tuesday night. The Raptors (2-1) have one of the toughest home-court advantages in the NBA.