LEAD: Thunder withstands 48 points by Ellis to edge Warriors, 119-116

By Paul Levine Feb 8, 2012, 8:32 GMT

Los Angeles - Monta Ellis got his points but the Oklahoma City Thunder walked away with the win.

Kevin Durant scored 33 points and banked in the go-ahead jumper with 14.2 seconds left, as the visiting Thunder withstood a career-high 48-point barrage by Ellis, to edge the Golden State Warriors 119-116 on Tuesday night.

'Our goal going into the game was to hold Monta Ellis to 50, and he got 48, so we felt we accomplished two things,' Thunder coach Scott Brooks said in tongue-in-cheek sense of humour. 'We got the win and we held him under 50.'

'It was a great performance by him. He was feeling it but we did get some stops at the end and it made the difference.'

Russell Westbrook finished with 31 points and seven assists for the NBA-best Thunder (20-4), coming off an overtime win at Portland on Monday night.

David Lee had his second career triple double with 25 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for Golden State, while Stephen Curry contributed 16 points and 10 assists.

'He was outstanding,' Curry said of Ellis. 'He had it rolling early and often, all the way to the last buzzer.'

Ellis' three-point play with under four minutes left to play gave the Warriors a 112-110 lead. But Durant's dunk capped a 7-0 run, giving the Thunder a 115-112 advantage with one minute 23 seconds left.

The Warriors regained the lead after Dorell Wright split a pair of free throws, and a three-point play by Ellis for a 116-115 advantage with 22.3 seconds left.

Durant, however, responded by kissing an 18-footer off the glass out of a timeout.

'I did not (mean to bank it in,' said Durant who added 10 rebounds and seven assists. 'It's one of those things where you shoot it and you're like, 'Aw, that's a terrible shot.' When it went in, I was kind of surprised.'

Ellis looked to answer but his three-pointer bounced off the rim with 4.9 seconds left, and Westbrook made two free throws at the other end, making it 119-116.

'The guy is on fire and he got a wide-open look,' Warriors coach Mark Jackson said of his star. 'I'll take it all day long.'

The Warriors had a final shot to force overtime but Brandon Rush's three-point attempt from the left corner was blocked by Durant at the buzzer.

'We executed, we got a good look,' Jackson said. 'Durant closed out and they won the game.'

Elsewhere: Minnesota Timberwolves 86, Sacramento Kings 84: Nikola Pekovic had 23 points with 10 rebounds, Derrick Williams hit the tie-breaking three-pointer with 57 seconds left and the Timberwolves minus All-Star Kevin Love held off the visiting Kings for their third straight win.

Williams stepped in for Love, who was serving the first of a two-game suspension, for stomping on Houston Rockets forward Luis Scola on Saturday.

Michael Beasley finished with 17 points and 14 boards while Spanish rookie sensation Ricky Rubio matched a career-high with 14 assists as the Timberwolves (13-12) moved over the .500 mark after 25 games for the first time since the 2005-06 season.

Marcus Thornton scored 22 points and rookie Jimmer Fredette fired in all 13 of his points in the final period for the Kings, who had their three-game winning streak snapped.

After erasing an early 15-point lead, the Kings caught their hosts at 82-apiece on Donte Green's three-pointer with 69 seconds left. Williams, however, took a pass from Rubio in the right corner and buried a triple of his own, putting the T-Wolves back on top, 86-84.

The Kings had a final shot to win the game, but Green's long three-point attempt from the left corner bounced off the rim at the buzzer.

Boston Celtics 94, Charlotte Bobcats 84: Paul Pierce passed Larry Bird as the Celtics second all-time leading scorer with 15 points, Kevin Garnett added 22 and the host Celtics rolled to their fifth consecutive victory while sending the league-worst Bobcats to their 12th straight loss.

Miami Heat 107, Cleveland Cavaliers 91: Dwyane Wade scored eight of his 26 points in the fourth quarter, LeBron James added 24 against his former team and the Heat pulled away late to beat the stubborn Cavaliers for its 11th win in the last 13 games.

Phoenix Suns 107, Milwaukee Bucks 105: Marcin Gortat scored 21 points, while Steve Nash celebrated his 38th birthday by hitting a driving layup with five seconds left, lifting the visiting Suns past the Bucks for their third straight victory.

Indiana Pacers 104, Utah Jazz 99: Darren Collison scored 25 points while Danny Granger had 12 of his 16 in the final quarter, carrying the Pacers over the visiting Jazz.