Rockets Blow Out Thunder In Game 1, Westbrook Left Out To Dry By Teammates

By Muk

Game 1 of the Thunder-Rockets matchup went the way that many people expected it to, with the Rockets offense being too much for the Thunder D. The 118-87 win in Houston certainly has the Rockets feeling confident, and for good reason, because the Thunder proved once again that they really are a one-man show.

Russell Westbrook and the Thunder struggled last night, and we saw once again that when Westbrook needs help, there is no one there to help him. Westbrook scored 22 points last night, adding 11 rebounds and 7 assists, but he struggled possessing the ball and did not shoot for a high %, and that proved costly for the Thunder. Even worse, Victor Oladipo, who is supposed to be the #2 guy for the Thunder, was virtually non-existent last night. Oladipo shot 1 for 12, totaling 6 points and pretty much nothing else. In a series where the Thunder will have to be scoring more than ever, having only 1 player score over 20 points and only 3 break double-digits is not a good start.

The Rockets on the other hand looked real strong, with James Harden performing great as usual, exploding for 37-points, 9 assists and 7 rebounds. However, the Rockets' biggest key to victory last night was Patrick Beverly, who went off for 21 points, 10 rebounds, while shooting an awesome 8-13 from the field and 4-6 from 3PT. The Rockets' had 5 players go off for double-digit scoring, and had no one turn the ball over more than 2 times, and that was really the key for them.

The Thunder will need to take better care of the basketball, and someone on this team needs to step up and held Brodie otherwise they will be headed home in what could be a clean-sweep. Westbrook isn't innocent in all of this and I'm well aware of that, but he will need help regardless.