The Philippine Online Chronicles

After a busy day, the NBA took a little breather by offering only three games on January 14.

Despite the number, all games featured non-stop action and excitement that anyone can appreciate.

Earlier, the Oklahoma City Thunder squeaked past the Orlando Magic to notch their fourth straight win. The Magic on the other hand, absorbed their second straight defeat after winning nine consecutive games.

Oklahoma 125, Orlando 124

In Orlando, the Oklahoma City Thunder pulled off a tough road win against the Orlando Magic by beating the home team, 125-124.

The Thunder relied on the triple-double performance of point guard Russell Westbrook, who tallied 32 points, 13 assists, and 10 rebounds. This is Westbrook’s fourth career triple-double.

Aside from Westbrook, the Thunder also had a solid performance from Kevin Durant, who chipped in 36 points as he continued his quest for a second scoring title.

The win is the Thunder’s fourth straight win, improving their record to 27-13 to place fourth in the West.

For the Magic, center Dwight Howard dominated the big man game by scoring 39 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. Aside from him, shooting guard J.J. Redick added 18 points, with 12 of them coming from beyond the arc.

The Magic are now on a two-game losing streak after notching nine straight with the acquisition of Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson, and Gilbert Arenas.

The Magic are now in fifth place in the East by sporting a 25-14 record. They are just half a game behind the Atlanta Hawks and the Chicago Bulls.

Denver 130, Miami 102

Without LeBron James, the Miami Heat did not have an answer for the deadly combination of J.R. Smith and Carmelo Anthony.

Smith scored 28 points while Anthony added 21 to help the Denver Nuggets beat the Heat, 130-102.

The Nuggets also had sold contributions from Nene and Chauncey Billups who recorded 17 points and 13 assists, respectively.

This is the second time in a row that the Nuggets routed their opponents. A few days ago, they beat the struggling Phoenix Suns by 34.

Without James, the Heat needed more contribution from the remaining members of the “Big Three”. Power forward Chris Bosh tallied 24 points while Dwyane Wade added 16.

Despite the solid performance from Bosh and Wade, the Heat really missed James’ contributions. James was sidelined because of the ankle injury that he sustained against the Los Angeles Clippers.

After winning two straight games, the Nuggets slightly climbed the Western conference standings. Right now, they’re in seventh place with a 22-16 record.

The Heat on the other hand, slipped to second place after holding the top spot in the East briefly. The Heat are now 30-11, which is just half a game behind the Boston Celtics.

Minnesota 109, Washington 97

Kevin Love continued his double-double binge earlier by tallying 35 points and 11 rebounds to help the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Washington Wizards, 109-97.

It was a huge game also for center Darko Milicic, who added 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Timberwolves.

For the Wizards, rookie point guard John Wall scored 14 points and dished out 10 assists. Unfortunately, his efforts weren’t enough to put his team over the top.

The loss is the Wizards’ 19^th straight on the road, making them the only team yet to win on the road this season.

The Wizards were in fact up by four with less than six minutes remaining in the game. Unfortunately for them, the Timberwolves showed off their impeccable execution late in the game to unleash a 19-1 run.

Love figured prominently during the run by scoring eight points in five minutes.

For the Wizards, Nick Young recorded 15 points a few days after erupting for 43 points against the Sacramento Kings.

The win snapped the Timberwolves five-game losing streak. The loss on the other hand, gives the Wizards a 10-27 record in the East.