Russell Westbrook gets 15th triple-double as Thunder beat Heat 106-94

Russell Westbrook is a man on a mission this season. The superstar point guard dropped his 15th triple-double of the 2016-17 NBA season midway through the third quarter Tuesday as the Oklahoma City Thunder (20-12) overcame the Miami Heat (10-22) 106-94 at the American Airlines Arena.

Ever since Kevin Durant abandoned the athletic point guard and took his talents to the Bay Area, Westbrook has been playing like a man possessed -- and he did so once again on Tuesday by amassing 29 points, 17 rebounds and 11 assists against a young Utah Jazz team that no answer to the MVP candidate. Westbrook was so unstoppable that he was just two rebounds shy of the triple-double mark at halftime as the visiting team ran away with a 61-48 lead.

Westbrook was ably supported by the twin towers in the front court, Enes Kanter and Steven Adams, who finished with 19 and 15 points respectively. Victor Oladipo, the team's second highest scorer this season, has yet to return to action since injuring his wrist during Thunder's 110-108 defeat to the Boston Celtics on Dec. 11. In his stead, the likes of Anthony Morrow and Alex Abrines have been playing additional time. Abrines has been particularly impressive during OKC's four-game winning streak, dropping 14 points Tuesday including 4/7 shots from three.

Meanwhile, the Miami Heat were without point guard Goran Dragic, who is side-lined due to back spasms. Second-year guard Josh Richardson had a career-high 22 points while James Johnson and Tyler Johnson added 16 and 15 points respectively while coming off the bench. Hassan Whiteside had a relatively off-night, going 4/11 from the field for his 12 points and 8 rebounds. Also, the shot-blocking centre couldn't stop Westbrook from breaking down Miami's defence and attacking the rim at will.

Russell Westbrook, the leader

Thunder coach Billy Donovan said that Westbrook's statistical explosion doesn't tell the real story. "They see the numbers and what he does in games. They don't get a chance to see behind the scenes. The one thing I admire about him is he practices every single day.

"He has great energy every single day. He comes to every shoot around and he practices. He puts the time in and that's the reason why he's as successful as he is," Donovan, who replaced Scott Brooks as Thunder coach last season, said, via ESPN.

With the victory, the Thunder moved to fifth seed in a highly wide-open race for playoff berths in the Western Conference. They are just 1.5 games behind James Harden and the Houston Rockets, who put a beat down on inter-state rivals Dallas Mavericks a little later in the evening.

Russell Westbrook and the Thunder will next visit the Memphis Grizzlies Thursday to cap off a two-game road trip. The Heat, on the other hand, Heat will visit the Charlotte Hornets on the same night.