Former league MVP Russell Westbrook recorded his second straight 40-point game as he put up 43 points, grabbed 15 rebounds, and dished out 8 assists but he wasn't on the court for the team in the second overtime period.
He committed his sixth foul in the final seconds of the first overtime and from then on, he was forced to watch the game from the bench.
So, the current MVP candidate Paul George took over.
He exploded for 45 points on 17-of-31 shooting but more importantly, he floated in the game-winner in the waning seconds of double-overtime to give the Thunder a huge win over their division rivals in the Jazz.
PAUL GEORGE FOR THE @OKCTHUNDER WIN IN DOUBLE OT!
— NBA (@NBA) February 23, 2019
Final in Oklahoma City:#ThunderUp 148#TeamIsEverything 147 pic.twitter.com/gXtsI87tU3
George, who clocked in 51 minutes on the court out of a possible 58, also registered 9 rebounds and 7 assists with zero turnovers.
😤 @Yg_Trece (45 PTS, 9 REB, 7 AST) & @russwest44 (43 PTS, 15 REB, 8 AST) both go for 40+ PTS in the @okcthunder thrilling double OT win! #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/bQeBsn5XeD
— NBA (@NBA) February 23, 2019
A majority of the scoring load for the Thunder was lifted by George and Westbrook (59.0%) but the same couldn't be said for the Jazz.
Donovan Mitchell led the team's scoring by matching his season-high of 38 points:
🕷️ @spidadmitchell puts up 38 PTS (ties season-high) for the @utahjazz in OKC! #TeamIsEverything pic.twitter.com/4uiq7iH342
— NBA (@NBA) February 23, 2019
The Jazz had all five starters scoring in double figures with their frontcourt racking up huge numbers - Rudy Gobert (26 points, 16 rebounds, 3 blocks) and Derrick Favors (24 points, 10-11 FG's).
In a game between two of the best defensive teams in the league (both among the top 5 in defensive rating), both teams put up really good shooting numbers from the field and from distance.
While the Thunder shot 46.6% from the field and 40.9% from distance (18 3PM), the Jazz shot a superior percentage of 49.5% from the field and 43.9% from three-point land (18 3PM).
Despite recording a season-high 25 turnovers in the game, it was the Jazz's higher field goal percentage, the difference in bench production (+16), and their rebounding dominance (+17) that helped them keep the game so competitive.
A bulk of Utah's bench scoring came from Jae Crowder (20 points).
While this game was the Thunder's seventh straight home win, it did snap Russell Westbrook's NBA-record streak for most consecutive triple-doubles at 11.
For both teams, this was the first game of a back-to-back. While the Jazz fly back to Utah to play the Dalals Mavericks, the Thunder will host the Sacramento Kings.
