San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard dunks the ball in their game against Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semis. (AP)
San Antonio — The San Antonio Spurs dismantled the Oklahoma City Thunder — in a hurry.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 38 points as the Spurs beat the Thunder 124-92 on Saturday night, never trailing in Game 1 of the second-round series.
The Spurs scored the most postseason points against the Thunder and came within eight points of matching their largest postseason victory ever.
“Obviously, it kind of got away from them,” San Antonio veteran Tim Duncan said. “We didn’t expect that, but we’ll take it at the start of a series.”
Aldridge broke out for his best game of the season after Memphis held him to 14.5 points in the first round, nearly seven points below his regular-season numbers. He was 18 for 23 from the field, including his first 3-pointer of the season and banking in a left-handed scoop shot as he was falling in the lane.
“It was just one of those nights,” Aldridge said. “I can’t take credit for it. I was just trying to play confident and ended up making some plays that I probably won’t make the next game. It was enough for me tonight.”
Kawhi Leonard added 25 points, five rebounds and five assists in 22 minutes for San Antonio. The Spurs led by as many as 43 points and sat their starters in the fourth quarter to rest them for Game 2 on Monday night.
Leonard and Aldridge combined for 45 points in the first half, outscoring Oklahoma City as a team by four. Unfortunately for the Thunder, the rest of the Spurs were just as impressive early.
San Antonio guard Danny Green was 5 for 6 on 3-pointers in scoring 18 pointers and as a team the Spurs were 9 for 15 on 3s. /ap
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