OKLAHOMA CITY: The stars all played anyway, but it didn’t much matter. The schedule and the turnovers combined to end the Cavaliers’ four-game winning streak.
Kyrie Irving scored 28 points and Kevin Love had 15 points and 12 rebounds, but the Cavs lost Thursday 118-109 to the Oklahoma City Thunder, just their second loss in their last eight games. LeBron James had 18 points, seven assists and five rebounds and Derrick Williams scored 12 points off the bench in his debut.
After initially announcing that James, Irving and Love would all probably sit out the final game of this road trip, coach Tyronn Lue reconsidered and played all three stars.
“Nothing changed,” Lue said prior to the game. “I wanted to see how the guys felt and they feel pretty good. We’re playing some pretty good basketball right now and they just want to keep it rolling. So all three guys say they feel pretty good, and we got a good thing going so why not keep it going?”
They couldn’t keep it going, however, because they committed 16 turnovers and appeared to tire in the game’s final minutes when the Thunder pulled away.
Irving tied the game at 99 on a driving layup with 5:46 left, but the Cavs couldn’t sustain the momentum. Russell Westbrook scored the Thunder’s next four baskets and a basket by Victor Oladipo pushed the Thunder’s lead to 111-101 with 2:08 left. Oladipo’s 3-pointer with 1:07 left again pushed the lead to double figures at 116-106, ending any chance at a comeback.
Westbrook recorded his 26th triple-double of the season with 29 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. Oladipo scored 12 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter while Steven Adams had 20 points and 13 rebounds for the Thunder, who split the season series with the Cavs and now prepare for Kevin Durant’s first return back to Oklahoma City on Saturday night.
Williams, released by the Miami Heat and signed earlier in the day to a 10-day contract, played 22 minutes despite no practice time with his new team. Lue wants to look at Williams at both forward spots, but he spent quite a bit of time defending point guards Thursday night.
“With [Iman] Shumpert going down, with J.R. [Smith] being out, we needed that 2-3-4 position,” Lue said. “We just thought it was a good signing for us and he was a good player who I always liked. His energy, his athleticism. What he does getting to the free-throw line, driving the basketball. It was a good signing for us.”
Shumpert remains sidelined with a sprained left ankle, but could possibly return Saturday when the Cavs host the Denver Nuggets.
DeAndre Liggins was expected to start at shooting guard Thursday in place of Shumpert, but he was scratched moments before the game because of a tooth injury. Jordan McRae started in his place.
Jason Lloyd can be reached at jlloyd@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Cavs blog at www.ohio.com/cavs. Follow him on Twitter www.twitter.com/JasonLloydABJ.