Thunder keep Wizards winless in bubble with 121-103 win
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — Rookie Darius Bazley scored a career-high 23 points off the bench, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat Washington 121-103 on Sunday to keep the Wizards the only winless team inside the NBA bubble.
Bazley was 5 of 8 from 3-point range. Danilo Gallinari scored 20 points, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 18 as Oklahoma City led from the opening bucket and improved to 3-2 in the seeding games.
Mike Muscala also scored 18 points. Chris Paul had 13 points and nine assists, and Hamidou Diallo finished with 13 points for the Thunder.
The Wizards, who came into this game already eliminated from playoff contention, dropped to 0-6 since the NBA restarted the season.
Jerome Robinson led Washington with 19 points off the bench. Isaac Bonga scored 14 points, Troy Brown Jr. and Moritz Wagner each had 12, Riu Hachimura added 11 and Ish Smith 10.
The Thunder opened with Muscala scoring six of their first 10 points for a quick 10-0 lead as the Wizards missed their first seven shots. Oklahoma City led 32-23 after the first quarter and 64-48 at halftime.
Oklahoma City just kept pushing the lead to as much as 22 when Muscala hit a 3-pointer with 8:15 left for a 76-54 lead. The Wizards pulled within 83-70 on Robinson’s 3-pointer with 2:16 remaining, but the Thunder led 90-75 at the end of the third.
TIP-INS
Wizards: G Shabazz Napier sat out with a sprained right ankle. … Improving the 3-point shot has been a focus of the Wizards even with the chance at a play-in game gone, and the Wizards got plenty of shots that didn’t go down. They shot 26% (9 of 36) beyond the arc. … Outscored the Thunder 48-42 in the paint.
Thunder: Matched a season high with 18 made 3-pointers, shooting 18-of-39 for 46.2%. They also made 18 3s against Miami on Jan. 17. … Played without C Steven Adams due to a bruised lower leg and Nerlens Noel. Muscala played after missing the last two games in the concussion protocol. … Snapped a two-game skid to the Wizards.
UP NEXT
Wizards: Play Milwaukee on Tuesday night.
Thunder: Play the Phoenix Suns on Monday.
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