NBA's Thunder roll over Mavericks to reach second round

NBA's Thunder roll over Mavericks to reach second round

LOS ANGELES - Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook combined for 69 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder advanced to the second round of the NBA postseason with a 118-104 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.

Kevin Durant (R) scored 33 points on 11-of-24 shooting to go along with seven rebounds

The Thunder took the series in five games and will next face the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference matchup. Game one will be Saturday at San Antonio.

Durant scored 33 points on 11-of-24 shooting to go along with seven rebounds. Steven Adams added 15 points and 10 boards in front of a crowd of 18,200 at Oklahoma City's Chesapeake Energy Arena.

Westbrook racked up 36 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists Monday, shooting 13-for-23 from the floor.

Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks' attack with 24 points on eight-of-16 shooting. Dwight Powell came off the bench to score 16 points and grab nine rebounds. Justin Anderson added 14 points in the loss.

In Charlotte, Kemba Walker scored 11 straight points in a decisive fourth quarter run as the Charlotte Hornets leveled their Eastern Conference first round series with a 89-85 win over Miami on Monday.

Walker finished with 34 points as he rebounded from a four-of-19 shooting performance in a game three victory by hitting 13-of-28 from the field and six-of-seven from the free-throw line.

There were numerous momentum swings as Charlotte fell behind by 11 early but took control by outscoring the Heat 29-13 in the second quarter.

They led by as many as 18 in the third quarter before the Heat answered with a 17-1 spurt, and the game was destined to go to the final seconds from there.

The teams will head back to Miami tied 2-2 for game five on Wednesday, with a game six now set for Friday in Charlotte. The home team has won every game so far in the best-of-seven series.

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