After a back-and-forth third quarter, the Thunder came out firing in the final frame. OKC led by three entering the fourth, but Joffrey Lauvergne quickly extended the lead with a two-handed slam following a strong post move, then Abrines took over.

The Spanish sharp-shooter drained a 3-pointer from the top of the key, went strong to the basket for an aggressive and-1 layup, all before knocking down another money ball from the left side. Throw in an impressive Enes Kanter hook shot, a Semaj Christon layup and a contested three from Abrines and the Thunder opened the fourth on a 18-to-5 run that gave OKC a 105-89 lead.

It was an impressive run by the Thunder, but even more impressive seeing Westbrook was watching from the bench as he picked up a breather.

OKC’s star point guard finally checked back into the game and played the part of closer as Westbrook made four of the Thunder’s final five field goals.

Kanter played 34 minutes in the win, scoring 14 points and grabbing 14 rebounds while Steven Adams added 12 points of his own. Lauvergne also had a solid game with 10 points. OKC shot 51.1 percent from the field in the win.

Anthony Davis led the Pelicans with 34 points while Jrue Holiday tallied 23.

The Thunder will be back in action on Friday against the Celtics in Boston.

","published":"2016-12-22T04:56:51.000Z","updated":"2016-12-22T04:56:50.000Z","summary":"

Russell Westbrook scored 42 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Thunder went into New Orleans and knocked off the Pelicans, 121-110 on Wednesday night.

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