Thunder stay in hunt for top seed
Kevin Durant made an MVP-like statement with 29 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists as the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder kept pace with the San Antonio Spurs atop the Western Conference with a 103-82 win over the Sacramento Kings.
James Harden added 20 points and Russell Westbrook scored 18 for the Thunder (46-17), who remained one-half game behind the Spurs (46-16) with three games left in the regular season.
The Kings, losers of nine of 10, were playing their second-to-last game at Power Balance Pavilion. With the deal for a new arena falling through and negotiations between ownership and the city of Sacramento contentious, the regular-season finale next Thursday could mark the last home game in the building.
Oklahoma City ended the first quarter with an 8-2 burst for a 32-25 cushion and never trailed again. Harden scored 11 in the second quarter to keep the Thunder in the lead, 57-49, at the half.
The Kings made a pair of runs in the third but were held off as Durant knocked down two 3-pointers early. Westbrook scored six points during a 12-2 burst that pushed the margin to 79-66.
Sacramento never got closer than eight points in the final minutes, and Durant scored five points in the final 1:07 to put it away.
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