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Another routine night for Russell

By Associated Press in Atlanta | China Daily | Updated: 2016-12-07 07:32

Westbrook knocked down five of seven, three of them beyond the arc, and finished with 16 points in the period as the Thunder stretched a one-point halftime lead to 83-69 heading to the fourth.

Atlanta rallied down the stretch, but Westbrook closed it out for OKC. He finished with 27 second-half points to send the Hawks to their seventh straight loss and 10th defeat in the last 11 games.

It's the longest losing streak for the Hawks since they dropped eight in a row in February 2014.

Coach Mike Budenholzer decided to shake things up, sending Kyle Korver to the bench and putting Thabo Sefolosha in the starting lineup.

The Hawks also were bolstered by the return of Paul Millsap, who had missed three straight games with a sore hip.

His 24 points led five players in double figures.

It didn't matter. Westbrook made sure of that.

"He can do so many different things," said Sefolosha, who was often matched against Westbrook.

"It's definitely mind-blowing. And the way he does it, he's everywhere."

Atlanta had a shot to send the game to overtime after Korver forced a jump ball.

Westbrook and the Thunder clamped down defensively off the inbounds play, and Tim Hardaway Jr.'s desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer failed to hit the rim.

"Can't dwell on it," Hardaway said. "I've got to move on to the next game."

Korver played more than 31 minutes and seemed to thrive in his new role as a backup.

He finished with 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting, knocking down three beyond the arc.

Korver had averaged 6.6 points over his last seven games, which led to his benching.

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