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Westbrook records 4th consecutive triple-double, scores 49 in Thunder win

Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

For the first time since Michael Jordan in 1988-89, an NBA player has recorded four consecutive triple-doubles.

Russell Westbrook needed overtime to do it Wednesday, but he successfully dished his 10th assist in the extra frame against the Philadelphia 76ers to give him his fourth in a row. He racked up 47 points and 16 rebounds to go along with the dimes, becoming the first player to go 45-15-10 since Vince Carter in 2007.

Playing his first game in a protective mask after a one-game absence due to a fractured cheekbone, Westbrook continued the ridiculous run of play that made him the Western Conference Player of the Month for February and has him firmly in the MVP discussion.

Here are Westbrook's last four performances:

  • Feb. 24: 20 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists in 28 minutes
  • Feb. 26: 39 points, 14 rebounds, 11 assists in 43 minutes
  • Feb. 27: 40 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists in 37 minutes
  • March 1: Absent due to broken face
  • March 4: 49 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists in 42 minutes

Not only is Westbrook the first to post four consecutive triple-doubles since Jordan, he joins only Jordan, Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, Maurice Stokes and Magic Johnson as the only players in league history to do so. His six triple-doubles on the season lead the league and are the most any player's recorded in a single season since Rajon Rondo had six in 2011-12.

Those 16 rebounds represent a career high, the 49 points represent a career high and Westbrook now has seven consecutive 20-point, 10-assist outings. He's running out of milestones at this rate.

Most importantly, Westbrook would surely tell you, the Thunder won, even if an overtime victory against the Sixers is nothing to boast about. The 123-118 victory moves Oklahoma to 34-27 on the season and keeps them a game ahead of the New Orleans Pelicans for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

That playoff berth seemed tenuous at times, with Westbrook and Kevin Durant both missing significant time early in the year. It's been in large part thanks to Westbrook's otherworldly play that the Thunder have hung in as Durant's injuries lingered, with the team now 11-8 on the season when Durant sits but Westbrook plays.

The Chesapeake Energy Arena was drowning Westbrook in MVP chants late in the game, something injured teammate and reigning MVP Durant was actively encouraging fans to continue. Because ... yeah, he's now averaging 27 points, seven rebounds and 8.2 assists. He's also now the league's leading scorer, having passed James Harden on Wednesday.

Oh, and it doesn't really hold a candle to Westbrook, but 34-year-old Jason Richardson scored 29 points for the Sixers, the first time he's done so since Feb. 11, 2012. There were a few other notable stat lines, too:

  • Isaiah Canaan scored a career-high 31 points with seven rebounds and six assists.
  • Nerlens Noel scored eight points with 13 rebounds, four steals and five blocks.
  • Luc Mbah a Moute had 18 points, 14 rebounds and five assists
  • Dion Waiters had his first double-double as a member of the Thunder, scoring 20 points with 10 rebounds.
  • And because it's worth repeating: Westbrook had 49-16-10 with three steals, something that hasn't been done since at least 1985-86, when Basketball Reference's Play Index first has game logs.

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