Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) shoots between Charlotte Hornets forward Cody Zeller, left, and center Al Jefferson, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2015. (AP Photo/Chris Keane)
CHARLOTTE, United States – Oklahoma City shook off the absence of injured NBA Most Valuable Player Kevin Durant on Saturday to defeat Charlotte 110-103.
Russell Westbrook scored a game-high 33 points to go with 10 assists and seven rebounds for the Thunder.
Serge Ibaka contributed 16 points and 12 rebounds, sparking a key fourth-quarter surge for Oklahoma City who have won five straight games and seven of their last eight.
D.J. Augustin and Enes Kanter, who were acquired by the Thunder at the trade deadline on Thursday, both scored in double figures, Augustin chipping in 12 points and Kanter contributing 10 points and 13 rebounds.
The Thunder’s win overshadowed Mo Williams’s sparkling debut for the Hornets.
Williams, traded last week from the Minnesota Timberwolves, started at point guard and posted 24 points and 10 assists.
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Al Jefferson scored 20 points apiece, but the Hornets suffered their fourth straight defeat.
Durant missed the game with a soreness in his right foot — the same foot on which he had surgery in the pre-season that saw him miss the first 17 games of the regular season.
Durant played just 10 minutes in last Sunday’s All-Star Game, and was favoring the foot late in Thursday’s win over Dallas.