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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Logan Newman

Halftime stats: Pokusevski leads Thunder 2nd-quarter run with 9 points

The Oklahoma City Thunder, looking to get back a win against the Chicago Bulls after dropping one to the same opponent on Wednesday, took a double-digit lead into the half on Friday.

Oklahoma City held a 64-49 lead at halftime that was elevated by a 20-4 run in favor of the Thunder midway through the second quarter.

During a four-minute period in that second frame, rookie Aleksej Pokusevski scored nine points to help the Thunder take the lead. He made a 3-pointer and showed off some of his ball handling and vision that can make him dangerous as a seven-footer who can dribble and drive.

He had nine points on 3-for-4 shooting and five rebounds in 10 minutes, posting a plus-14.

Al Horford again led the Thunder in scoring, putting up 16 points in 13 minutes of play. He went 4-for-5 from behind the 3-point line.

George Hill, starting after sitting the second game of the preseason, has made all three of his field goal attempts.

Darius Bazley is already posting a double-double. He has seven points and 10 rebounds to go with a block and a steal apiece.

He highlighted it with a vicious dunk on the fast break.

In the Wednesday matchup against Chicago, the Thunder were beaten up by the Bulls’ guard duo of Coby White and Zach LaVine. On Friday, they quieted White but were unable to stop LaVine.

White had just four points on 1-for-8 shooting and only attempted two free throws in the half.

LaVine, on the other hand, had 16 points, tying Horford for a game-high. He shot 7-for-11 from the field.

OKC’s hot third quarter, in which they outscored the Bulls 35-22, pushed them to a halftime lead.

The Thunder will look to hold that and finish the postseason with a 2-1 record before entering the regular season.

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