The Oklahoma City Thunder gave every opportunity to the New Orleans Pelicans to steal a win before shutting them down in the fourth quarter to win 121-110.
Kiwi superstar Steven Adams finished the game with 12 points, four rebounds and three assists while the stats were led yet again by Russell Westbrook who registered 42 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.
It was a tough night at the office for Adams who was charged with defending Anthony Davis who is widely regarded as currently one of the best power forwards in the game.
Shooting out to a nine-point lead in the second quarter, it looked as if the Thunder were going to head into the second half with a very big lead.
However, the Pelicans, led by superstar Davis and supported by Jrue Holiday, exploded back into contention with an 11-point run before half time.
For one of the first times this season, the Thunder bench really made their presence known in the second half with Alex Abrines, Enes Kanter and Joffrey Lauvergne all hitting 10 points or more with the former slotting a career-high 18 points.
While the Pelicans showed some spirited fightback in the fourth quarter, their reliance on Davis was telling and they couldn't pull together the all-round game to rein the visitors in.
The Pelicans fall to 10-21 in their win/loss while the Thunder jump up to 17-12 and now head to Boston to play the Celtics on Christmas eve (NZ time).
Newshub.