Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder dribbles the ball during their NBA game against the Miami Heat at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida, USA on Tuesday.
Los Angeles: The seemingly unstoppable Russell Westbrook produced his 15th triple-double of the season on Tuesday to propel the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 106-94 NBA victory over the Heat in Miami.
Westbrook's 52nd career triple-double was his 30th of 2016 -- a total spanning the latter part of last season.
He joined Oscar Robertson as the only players to notch 30 triple-doubles in a calendar year -- furthering his chances of matching Robertson's 1961-62 feat of averaging a triple-double over an entire season.
"He's a unique player," Thunder coach Billy Donovan said of Westbrook, who reeled in a rebound to wrap up a triple-double with 6:40 remaining in the third quarter.
He finished with 29 points, 17 rebounds and 11 assists.
Oklahoma City had a 16-4 advantage in fast break points and outscored Miami 58-32 in the paint.
Westbrook connected on 11 of 22 shots from the floor and seven of 10 from the free throw line.
But Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said the lasting impression left by Westbrook was the way he gave it all he had for all 37 minutes he spent on the floor.
In a testy all-Texas tussle, the Houston Rockets used a 16-0 scoring run in the second quarter to take control en route to a 123-107 victory over the Mavericks in Dallas. With the win, the Rockets have swept all four of their regular-season games against the Mavericks for the first time since the 1997-98 campaign.
James Harden led the Rockets with 34 points, 11 assists and five rebounds as Houston improved to 24-9. For Dallas, the defeat spoiled the return of Australian centre Andrew Bogut, who missed the Mavs' prior 11 games with a bone bruise on his right knee.
