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CHARLOTTE, N. wholesale nfl jerseys .C. -- Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook had arthroscopic knee surgery Friday and will be sidelined until after the All-Star break. Westbrook will miss at least 27 games. "He will be missed," coach Scott Brooks said before Oklahoma Citys game Friday night against the Charlotte Bobcats. "Obviously we are a very good team with him, and without him were still going to be a very good team." General manager Sam Presti said in a news release earlier in the day that Westbrook has been playing pain-free, but "recently had experienced increased swelling" in his right knee. "After consultation and consideration by his surgeon in Los Angeles, a plan was established to monitor the swelling that included a series of scheduled MRIs," Presti said in the release. "On the most recent MRI it was determined by the surgeon that there was an area of concern that had not previously existed, nor was detectable in the previous procedures, and it was necessary to evaluate Russell further. The consulting physician determined that arthroscopic surgery was necessary to address the swelling that was taking place." Brooks said Reggie Jackson, who is averaging 12.5 points, will start. Jeremy Lamb will also see increased playing time in Westbrooks absence. "Guys believe in what he does for our team," Brooks said of Jackson. "Hes only going to get better. Hes a young point guard in this league." Westbrooks knee problems began in April when he tore his meniscus in the second game of the Western Conference playoffs, sidelining him for the remainder of the post-season and all but ending Oklahoma Citys chances of reaching the NBA Finals. He had a second arthroscopic surgery as the Thunder were preparing for training camp after developing inflammation in the knee. However, Westbrook missed only two regular-season games before returning to the floor. Oklahoma City has since gone on a 21-3 tear with Westbrook in the starting lineup. The five-year NBA player is averaging 21.3 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Thunder, who entered Friday nights game with a 23-5 record, a half-game behind the first-place Portland Trail Blazers in the Northwest Division. Oklahoma City has won 10 of its last 11 games. In his last game on Christmas, Westbrook didnt look like a player who was in pain, finishing with 14 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in a 123-94 rout of the New York Knicks. Brooks said he didnt know the knee was an issue until after Wednesdays game. "Hes passed every medical benchmark and he was playing great basketball, probably some of the best basketball in the entire league," Brooks said. "Were looking forward to him coming back and getting back to the level that he has played at -- and he will." jerseys from china . Midfielder Michael Bradley, one of the teams new designated players, will make his debut, while striker Gilberto could see his first action for TFC in the contest.cheap jerseys . Gregor Blanco doubled, singled and drove in three runs, and the surging San Francisco Giants beat the New York Mets 6-4 on Sunday for their fifth straight win. "Theres nothing I can complain about," manager Bruce Bochy said. The Giants completed their fourth sweep of the season.OKLAHOMA CITY -- Kevin Durant often says hell do whatever his team needs. In the second half against Memphis, his mission was simply to score as often as possible. He had 30 of his 37 points after halftime to help the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Grizzlies 113-107 on Friday night. Durant made 10 of 15 shots and all eight of his free throws after halftime to help the Thunder hold off a furious rally. "I just told myself to be aggressive, to score," said Durant, the NBAs scoring leader. "Thats all I said to myself at half. I was frustrated with the shots I was taking. I felt that I wasnt disciplined. I worked my fundamentals. I just wanted to be aggressive to score. I think thats what my team needed." Russell Westbrook had 21 points and six assists in 28 minutes, Serge Ibaka had 16 points and nine rebounds and Reggie Jackson added 14 points for the Thunder, who snapped a three-game losing streak. Oklahoma City had dropped every game since Westbrook returned from his latest knee surgery -- and nearly lost again because Mike Miller scored all 19 of his points in the fourth quarter to rally Memphis. Westbrook wasnt worried about the fact that the Thunder almost squandered the 16-point lead they had heading into the fourth. "We won, thats what Im going to take from it," Westbrook said. "We lost three in a row. We just won." Marc Gasol had 17 points and Zach Randolph added 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies, who had won five of six. Memphis ran into a team that was tired of losing. "Theyre extremely talented, but they were very focused, locked in," Memphis coach Dave Joerger said. "They played at a very, very high level, I thought tonight, as well as Ive seen them play against us in a long, long time." Thunder guard Thabo Sefolosha left in the first half with a left calf strain and did not return. The Grizzlies made 26 of 40 shots in the second half, but couldnt stop Oklahoma City in the final minutes when the game got close. The Thunder offence broke out of a lull in the second quarter when Westbrook returned from a rest. He scored 10 points in the final 5:36 to help Oklahoma Citty take a 57-42 lead at the break despite getting just seven points from Durant on 2-for-9 shooting. wholesale jerseys. Randolph was held to 2-for-10 shooting in the first half, and the Grizzlies shot just 38 per cent. Durant got it going in the opening minutes of the third quarter with a 3-pointer and a dunk to help Oklahoma City take a 65-47 lead. Westbrook showed some of his old form when he froze Tayshaun Prince with a crossover dribble, then drained a mid-range jumper to give the Thunder a 70-55 edge. Durant scored 17 points on 6-for-10 shooting in the third quarter to help the Thunder take an 87-71 lead at the end of the period. Miller came off the bench and made three 3-pointers in the fourth to help the Grizzlies trim the deficit to 103-97 with 4:22 remaining. "In the fourth quarter, our bench was unbelievable," Prince said. "We (the starters) put them in a bad situation and they almost got us out of it." Memphis cut the margin to three before Durant made a baseline jumper on an assist from Westbrook with 1:24 to play, then a floater with 33 seconds remaining to seize control for good. "We cant afford to dig ourselves a hole like we did," Grizzlies guard Mike Conley said. "Theyre too good of a team, especially at home. They came out and they wanted to win this game from the very beginning." The Thunder finally resembled the team that has earned the top record in the Western Conference. They won for the first time since Feb. 13 and for the first time at home since Feb. 9 "It feels great," Durant said. "You never take it for granted. We learned a lesson after losing three in a row. Its tough to swallow, so its good to get a W." NOTES: Thunder centre Steven Adams played through flu-like symptoms. The 7-foot rookie from New Zealand started in place of Kendrick Perkins, who will miss about six weeks with a left groin strain. Thunder coach Scott Brooks said before the game that Adams might not play. ... Oklahoma City shot 50 per cent in the first quarter to lead 29-22 at the end of the period. ... Memphis Kosta Koufos committed four fouls in his first 5 minutes of play in the first half. cheap jerseys from china ' ' ' |
