ithout Alfredsson. "We add a couple good players with Clarke | Forum

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Oklahoma City is having no problem adjusting to the occasional game without All-Start Russell Westbrook. Damian Lillard Jersey . The Thunder cruised to a 95-73 win over struggling Utah on Sunday night while their star point guard took the night off to rest his surgically repaired right knee. They did so behind 19 points from Kevin Durant, as well as a 17-point, 11-rebound effort from Serge Ibaka -- stretching their lead to as many as 37 points in the third quarter before finishing the game out with reserves. "We just wanted to play our game," Durant said. "No matter whos on the floor, we want to execute a game plan on both ends. "... Of course, we would love to have Russell out, but everybody stepped up." Durant sat out the fourth quarter for Oklahoma City (9-3), which won its fifth straight overall and sixth straight at home to open the season, its best opening stretch since moving from Seattle. Westbrook missed his first action since sitting for the seasons opening two games while recovering from the second of two off-season knee surgeries. Hes expected back when the Thunder host Western Conference leader San Antonio on Wednesday. Utah (1-14), which has lost six straight games, was led by 10 points apiece from Enes Kanter and Rudy Gobert. The Jazz looked for a spark in the lineup by starting former Michigan standout Trey Burke, the ninth overall pick in the June draft. Burke, playing in his third game since returning from surgery on his right index finger, struggled throughout -- finishing with four points on 2-of-9 shooting. Utah needed a 30-point fourth quarter to avoid its lowest point total of the season. As it was, the Jazz equaled their worst output of the season, and they nearly equaled their previous worst loss of 24 points -- which has happened twice this season. Utah, which shot just 39.4 per cent (28 of 71), is winless on the road at 0-9. Its the only Western Conference team without a road win, and the start is the worst on the road for the Jazz since opening the 1979-80 season 0-11 away from home. "Were trying to build who we are in this league with this group of guys, and weve got to have more of a sense of urgency to start a game, especially against a team thats this good," Utah coach Tyrone Corbin said. The game was third straight at home for Oklahoma City, which is in the middle of six-game home stand. Playing the Jazz provided the perfect opportunity for Thunder coach Scott Brooks to give Westbrook five straight nights off. The Thunder took a 75-38 lead late in the third quarter after a 3-pointer by Thabo Sefolosha, who finished with nine points, and they led 47-30 at halftime. "Our philosophy is like everybody else; we want to make teams take tough shots, and I thought we did that tonight," Brooks said. Reggie Jackson -- starting in place of Westbrook -- finished with 10 points. Jeremy Lamb added 15 points and Perry Jones had 13 off the Oklahoma City bench, which finished with a combined 36 points. "We trust them, we believe in them, and they believe in themselves," Sefolosha said. "Theyre playing extremely well, theyre improving, working really hard, all of them on their game and it shows." Oklahoma City struggled in the early going without Westbrook, hitting just one of its first eight shots. The cold shooting was short lived for the NBAs sixth-highest scoring team, which entered the game averaging 104.3 points per game. Even without their All-Star point guard, the Thunder hit 17 of their next 29 shots and finished the first half 18 of 37 (48.6 per cent) from the field. They led by as many as 20 points in the half, taking a 47-27 lead after back-to-back baskets by Ibaka, and the Jazz -- 29th in the league in scoring -- offered little resistance. Utah shot just 33.3 per cent (13 of 39) in the first half. "When youre not scoring, it puts a lot of pressure on your defence to stop a team to keep the game close," Jazz forward Marvin Williams said. "Unfortunately for us, the team we had to stop was Oklahoma City. Thats how a game can kind of get away from you pretty quickly." NOTES: The streak of Oklahoma City fans hitting halftime shots for $20,000 ended at two after a fan air-balled his second-quarter attempt. ... Thunder fans have hit five half-court shots during the 2013 calendar year ... Oklahoma City was 34-7 at home last season. Authentic Gerald Henderson Jersey . "No difference at all," chirped U.S. roommate and linemate James van Riemsdyk. "Its still the same cranky Phil. Authentic Mason Plumlee Jersey . -- Teemu Selanne scored the first goal of his 22nd NHL season, and the Anaheim Ducks extended the best start in franchise history with their fifth straight victory, 3-2 over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. http://www.theblazersteamshop.com/...rter-blazers-jersey/ .H. -- Matt Kenseth made it 2 for 2 in the Chase, holding off teammate Kyle Busch to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.As surprised as he was by Daniel Alfredsson leaving the Ottawa Senators, Jason Spezza talked with the former captain enough to not be shocked. "I could understand some of his reasoning and wish him the best," Spezza said. But understanding is different than figuring out how to replace what Alfredsson brought the Senators, most notably the unquestioned leadership that came from his 17 seasons in Ottawa. Spezza would welcome the captaincy in Alfredssons absence, and the 30-year-old centre doesnt believe he has to alter much in order to assume that responsibility. "I think for me, leaderships something that comes naturally," Spezza said at last weeks NHL player media tour in Newark, N.J. "I think Ive had a big say in whats gone on in our room over the last few years, so it wont change much in how I approach the team. "Obviously itd be a huge honour. But to this point weve had a great group and we have some guys that have been there for a long time and weve always kind of led as a group, even with Alfie there. So I imagine it would be the same way with whoevers wearing the C." Spezza has played 611 games for the Senators dating to 2002-03, a tenure only surpassed by 1996 No. 1 pick Chris Phillips (1,073 games dating to 1997-98) and Chris Neil (779 games dating to 2001-02). Phillips long-standing presence on defence makes him the other reasonable choice to succeed Alfredsson as captain. But Spezza, given his star power and how much he wants to lead the post-Alfredsson era, seems to be the natural fit. "I think theres a lot of leaders in Ottawa," centre Jean-Gabriel Pageau said Saturday during a rookie tournament in London. "Spezza being there for a couple of years now, I think he has good potential to be a good leader. Hes real nice with everyone, and every time hes on the ice he give everything he has." Back and knee injuries limited Spezza to just five regular-season and three playoff games last season, and he concedes not being invited to Canadas Olympic orientation camp "gives me a little chip on my shoulder." "Im pretty motivated just by not playing last year," he said. "I want to have a good year. Ive prepared myself to havve a good year. Ed Davis Blazers Jersey. " The Senators are counting on that in the wake of Alfredsson signing a one-year deal with the Detroit Red Wings, now an Atlantic Division rival. Spezza returning to the form that included 84 points in 2011-12 would be a nice step toward being back in the playoffs. For Spezza to do that and perhaps assume the captaincy, former Ottawa assistant Luke Richardson believes consistency needs to be the priority. "Theres areas of the game as a leader and you want to be a leader every night," said Richardson, a former teammate of Spezzas who now coaches the AHLs Binghamton Senators. "You cant put the risk in at the neutral zone and at the blue line when youre maybe creating two chances but youre giving them two chances. So I think thats the part of the game that has gotten way better, and hopefully it continues to get better, and thatll be a good judge on whether hes the leader of this team." Richardson, who spent three seasons on the staff in Ottawa, senses Spezzas desire to be captain. "I think I really see that he wants to be the leader, he wants to pass on some of the things that he learns to the other guys and help them get along," Richardson said. "Hes a guy that over the last few years has really grown as a person and hes matured. Hes been around the league a long time, hes had some rough times, hes had some real successful times, and hes learned from guys like Daniel Alfredsson and other veterans that have been in Ottawa the last few years." Veterans are hard to come by on a young Senators team that features 2011-12 Norris Trophy-winning defenceman Erik Karlsson and goaltender Craig Anderson, who helped keep Ottawa afloat last season amid a torrent of injuries. But Spezza already sounds like a man who wants to prove the Senators can be better this season without Alfredsson. "We add a couple good players with Clarke MacArthur and Bobby Ryan, Joe Corvo on defence, so I think possibly we have a chance to be a better team than we were last year," he said. "We look better on paper and we should be a better team, but now its our job to put it all together." Its a job that starts with Spezza. Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jersey ' ' '