About Last Night: Thunder stun Pacers with 24-0 run

Talk about a shift in momentum.

A 10-point deficit turned into a 14-point lead when the Oklahoma City Thunder scored 24 unanswered points in their 107-99 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

Paul George topped the score chart with 31 points, seven of which were part of OKC’s third-quarter surge. Russell Westbrook also contributed significantly with 17 points, 12 assists, and 11 rebounds, marking his 29th triple-double of the season.

By missing 14 consecutive shots over a span of more than six minutes, the Pacers played a significant role in the largest run by any team this season.

Tyreke Evans eventually managed to make a layup at the 3:57 mark, ending the run. However, Westbrook responded instantly with a mid-range jumper over Cory Joseph, followed by his signature rock-the-baby celebration.

Oklahoma City, which had lost five of six, secured a critical win.

Meanwhile, the Pacers, who are on a nine-game losing streak on the road, are at risk of losing their No. 4 seed in the East and home court advantage in the playoffs’ first round to the No. 5 Boston Celtics. These teams will face off at TD Garden on Friday.

Booker: ‘I’m going for 50’

Devin Booker was still in high form two nights after scoring 59 points against the Utah Jazz.

Booker, who had scored 30 points by halftime, was overheard telling a nearby fan, “I’m aiming for 50.”

Booker scored a career high of exactly 50 points at home.

Booker, 22, became the youngest player in NBA history with consecutive 50-point games, but his latest scoring binge was wasted once again by the Phoenix Suns in a 124-121 loss to the Washington Wizards.

This was the first instance of a Phoenix player scoring 50 in consecutive games. Before this, Tom Chambers was the sole Suns player who had managed to score 40 in back-to-back games.

Booker joins Kobe Bryant, James Harden, Allen Iverson, Michael Jordan, Antawn Jamison, and Bernard King as the seventh player to score 50 points in back-to-back games since the NBA-ABA merger in 1976-77.

Durant’s ruthless efficiency

He has the ability to take any shot he desires.

Steve Kerr’s perspective on Kevin Durant’s most efficient shooting game was as follows.

Durant and Stephen Curry each scored 28 points — with Durant hitting 12 of 13 from the field — and the Golden State Warriors beat the Memphis Grizzlies 118-103.

Durant didn’t miss a shot until there were only 6:33 minutes left in regulation, having made all his seven shots in the first half. In his 35-minute play, he also recorded nine rebounds, five assists, and two steals.

“After the game, Kerr told reporters, “I feel like if he chose to, he could’ve made 24 out of 25. But he was spreading the ball around and trying to engage everyone. He was outstanding.”

Steve Kerr on Kevin Durant’s efficiency: “He can get any shot he wants.” pic.twitter.com/LsD9KfvLtW

— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) March 28, 2019

Milestone night for Conley

Mike Conley reclaimed his title as the Memphis Grizzlies’ all-time leading scorer after scoring a 3-pointer against the Golden State Warriors at the 2:50 mark of the second quarter.

Conley surpassed Marc Gasol, who accumulated 11,684 points over more than 10 seasons with Memphis, before being traded to the Toronto Raptors the previous month.

.@memgrizz G Mike Conley on passing his friend Marc Gasol on the all-time scoring list:

“It’s an honor” pic.twitter.com/oZghYofwQ8

— Grind City Media (@grindcitymedia) March 28, 2019

During the 2016-17 season, Conley surpassed Gasol for first place. However, Gasol regained the lead last season when Conley was out for 70 games due to an Achilles injury.

Conley, already leading the franchise in games played, assists, steals, and 3-pointers, becomes only the third player to currently lead an NBA franchise in all five of these categories. The other two are LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Reggie Miller of the Indiana Pacers.

Conley, averaging a career-high 20.9 points this season, finished with 22 points and eight assists in the Grizzlies’ 118-103 loss to the Warriors.

Dunk of the night

Jeff Green included Dragan Bender in his poster collection.

Stat of the night

Devin Booker scored 30 points in the first half, following a 32-point second half on Monday night. This makes him the third player in the last 15 seasons to have consecutive 30-point halves. The other two were Allen Iverson in February 2005 and Kobe Bryant in December 2005.