OKLAHOMA CITY – Russell Westbrook's fans finally got to show their appreciation for his loyalty to the Thunder.
And he led his team to an exhibition win with 26 points and 10 assists as Oklahoma City beat the Timberwolves 112-94 on Sunday night.
It was the Thunder's first home preseason game after opening with two games in Spain, then playing in Dallas and Tulsa. Oklahoma City's crowd cheered loudly when Westbrook was the first player announced during pregame introductions, in part because the former scoring champion and two-time All-Star MVP re-signed with Oklahoma City after Kevin Durant chose to leave for Golden State.
Westbrook fired up the crowd when he got one of his typical blow-by layups in the first quarter and was fouled. He got the arena energized again when he uncorked a highlight-reel one-handed dunk in the third quarter.
Steven Adams added 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Thunder (2-3).
The Wolves (3-2), who beat the Miami Heat 101-96 on Saturday night in Louisville, Ky., rested all five usual starters — Ricky Rubio, Andrew Wiggins, Karl-Anthony Towns, Zach LaVine and Gorgui Dieng — as well as Shabazz Muhammad in their final game of their five-game preseason road trip. They play their first home exhibition Wednesday against Memphis at Target Center, then close out the preseason Friday at home against Charlotte.
John Lucas III scored 18 points and Adreian Payne added 16 to lead the Wolves. Also in double figures for the Wolves were Nemanja Bjelica and Tyus Jones with 11 points apiece and Cole Aldrich with 10. Kris Dunn had only six points but had a team-high six assists.
The Thunder led 56-49 at halftime behind Westbrook's 17 points and eight assists. But in the first 7:32 of the third quarter, Oklahoma City outscored the Wolves 16-5 to open a 78-58 cushion. Westbrook had half of the Thunder points in that run.
