Thunder holds off Warriors 115-114 in overtime

Three different people took responsibility for 4.2 seconds of chaos that nearly cost the Thunder a win Tuesday night. Scott Brooks. Daequan Cook. And Kevin Durant.

Three different people took responsibility for 4.2 seconds of chaos that nearly cost the Thunder a win Tuesday night.

Scott Brooks. Daequan Cook. And Kevin Durant.

photo - Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant (35) reacts after a dunk during the NBA basketball game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Golden State Warriors at the Oklahoma City Arena, Tuesday, March 29, 2011. Photo by Bryan Terry, The Oklahoman

Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant (35) reacts after a dunk during the NBA basketball game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Golden State Warriors at the Oklahoma City Arena, Tuesday, March 29, 2011. Photo by Bryan Terry, The Oklahoman

Multimedia

Videoview all videos

Thunder holds off Warriors in OT

Mar 30Kevin Durant scored 39 points, as OKC finished its...

Analysis: Thunder-Warriors

Mar 30Darnell Mayberry and John Rohde dissect OKC's...

Photoview all 20 photos

Article Gallery: Thunder holds off Warriors 115-114 in overtime

NewsOK Related Articles

Thunder notebook: Nick Collison sits, Nate Robinson activated
03/29/2011 Thunder reserve forward Nick Collison missed Tuesday night's 115-114 overtime victory against Golden State due to a sprained left ankle. His status is...
Thunder's Kevin Durant breaks out of slump
03/29/2011 On a night when Oklahoma City defeated Golden State 115-114 with some bonus basketball, Durant broke out of his self-proclaimed slump with 39 points.

Thunder at Suns

When: 9 p.m. Wednesday

Where: US Airways Center, Phoenix

TV: FS Oklahoma (Cox 37, HD Ch. 722)

Radio: WWLS 98.1-FM, WWLS 640-AM

Three things to know

- Heading into Tuesday night's game at Sacramento, the Suns had lost two straight and seven of their last 10 games to fall out of playoff contention.

- The Thunder won 111-107 at Phoenix on Feb. 4 despite the Suns hitting nine of their first 11 shots and Vince Carter scoring a season-high 33 points.

- The three previous meetings have been decided by four points or less. In OKC, the Suns won 113-110 on Dec. 19 and lost 122-118 in overtime March 6.

The final score might have confirmed that the Thunder sidestepped what would have been a stunning defeat and ultimately sealed a 115-114 overtime victory over Golden State. But to that trio, those 4.2 seconds were inexcusable, and it laid out another area where this playoff-bound but still-growing bunch must improve.

It happened in the closing seconds of regulation.

With the Thunder on the verge of victory, holding a six-point lead with 13.5 seconds remaining, Warriors forward Reggie Williams hit a quick 3-pointer with 11.1 seconds showing. As Cook tried to inbound the ball, Warriors guard Monta Ellis stole a pass intended for Durant and buried a game-tying trey from the left corner with 6.9 ticks left.

Durant then missed a baseline fadeaway as time expired in regulation that would have won it.

“We got to do a much better job on execution down the stretch,” Brooks said. “I take blame on that. I should have called a timeout when we were up three when they made the big 3.”

Cook, however, didn't allow his coach to shoulder the blame.

“At the end of the day, it was what I did,” Cook said. “I take full responsibility for the pass I made.”

Durant, meanwhile, said the miscommunication was on him, explaining that he thought another defender was behind him since Golden State guard Stephen Curry was denying him.

“That was all my fault. I felt so bad. I caused (Cook) to throw that ball away,” Durant said.

Page 1 of 2

1 2 Next