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Thunder-Pacers Preview

Mar 20, 2010 - 5:11 PM By MATT BEARDMORE STATS Writer

Oklahoma City (42-25) at Indiana (23-46), 2:30 p.m. EDT

With his team posting a 43-121 record during his first two NBA seasons, Kevin Durant knows how it feels to lose. Lately, he hasn't experienced that feeling very often.

Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder look to continue their push up the Western Conference standings Sunday when they face an Indiana Pacers team looking to win five straight at home for the first time this season.

Selected second overall by Seattle in the 2007 draft, Durant averaged 20.3 points and earned Rookie of the Year honors while the SuperSonics finished 20-62. With the team relocating to Oklahoma City last season, Durant increased his scoring to 25.3 per game, but the Thunder closed near the bottom of the West at 23-59.

It's been a different story for Durant and the Thunder (42-25) this season, currently in fifth place in the West and closing in on Utah for fourth and home-court advantage in the opening round of the playoffs. Led by Durant's 31 points, Oklahoma City won 115-89 at Toronto on Friday to clinch the franchise's first winning season since 2004-05.

While coach Scott Brooks called the Thunder's 18th win in 22 games their best performance of the year, Raptors fans showered the home team with a chorus of boos as the game ended.

"Teams have tough nights," Durant said. "We've had our tough nights. It happens in our league. I think we came out with a lot of energy today."

Durant has provided a spark all season, scoring 29.7 points per game - second in the NBA to LeBron James' 29.9. Durant is averaging 32.8 points in five career games versus Indiana, including 40 in a 108-102 home win Jan. 9.

"It doesn't matter, Kobe (Bryant), LeBron, he's just a great offensive player," said Pacers coach Jim O'Brien said. "He does it with seemingly little effort. It's a pleasure to watch him."

O'Brien feels similarly about Danny Granger. The fifth-year Pacers forward, who missed Wednesday's loss at Cleveland after taking an inadvertent elbow to the cheek the previous night, had 29 points with six assists and three steals in Friday's 106-102 victory over Detroit.

"I felt healthy," said Granger, who scored 25 in the Jan. 9 loss in Oklahoma City. "I don't think anything is wrong with me. I just got my block knocked off real quick and I'm OK now."

Granger has averaged 28.3 points during Indiana's four-game home winning streak. The Pacers (23-46) haven't won five straight at Conseco Fieldhouse since a six-game stretch from Feb. 6-March 1, 2009.

Friday's win was Indiana's third in six games overall following a 2-11 stretch. However, the Pacers have lost 20 of 23 against Western foes.

Rookie guard A.J. Price scored 19 of his season-high 23 points in the fourth quarter of the loss at Oklahoma City as the Pacers nearly completed a rally from 18 down in the third.

Durant had 37 points in the Thunder's last visit to Indiana, a 107-99 defeat Nov. 10, 2008.