OKLAHOMA CITY — It didn't take long for Russell Westbrook to show the defensive prowess that convinced the Oklahoma City Thunder to make him their first-round draft pick.

Westbrook sparked a comeback with back-to-back steals and then scored the go-ahead basket for the last of his 14 points as the Thunder beat the Minnesota Timberwolves, 88-85, last night for their first victory in their new home.

Westbrook, who earlier sparked a 13-0 run that pulled the Thunder out of a third-quarter deficit, hit the decisive basket with a driving layup that made it 86-85 with 2:19 to play and Oklahoma City stopped Minnesota on its next six possessions to hang on for the win.

"We're going to have to be scrappy to win games," said Westbrook, the No. 4 overall pick in this year's draft and the first building block in the franchise's defensive overhaul.

Westbrook might be just what the Thunder need to improve on a defense that gave up the fourth-most points in the NBA last season as the Seattle SuperSonics. After giving up 106.3 points last season, none of Oklahoma City's first three opponents have even hit triple digits.

The improvement was clear down the stretch, as Minnesota scored only two points in the final 5 minutes — on Al Jefferson's putback of Randy Foye's missed 3-pointer that gave the Timberwolves an 85-84 lead with 2:43 left.

Westbrook answered with his layup at the other end, and Ryan Gomes, Jefferson and Foye all missed chances to give the Timberwolves the lead before Nick Collison's left-handed hook shot with 16.4 seconds left made it a three-point game.

After a pair of missed free throws by Jeff Green gave Minnesota one last chance, Gomes missed a potential tying 3-pointer from the left side to close the game. Officials huddled by a courtside monitor to see if there was a foul before the final buzzer, and cheerleaders ran onto the court to start the celebration.

It turned out the Thunder's first win with their new identity was safe after all.

"Any win feels good, honestly," Oklahoma City coach P.J. Carlesimo said. "It's very good to get a win in this building. It's very good to get a win the way we got it."

BUCKS 94, KNICKS 86

NEW YORK — Richard Jefferson and Ramon Sessions each scored 18 points, and Milwaukee used a strong defensive effort to shake off Michael Redd's injury and beat New York. Redd added 16 points before leaving with a sprained right ankle with Milwaukee leading by 16 late in the third quarter. Charlie Villanueva also scored 16, while Andrew Bogut had 13 points and 11 rebounds.

MILWAUKEE 27 22 26 19—94

NEW YORK 23 22 16 25—86

MILWAUKEE—Jefferson 6-15 5-9 18, Villanueva 8-17 0-0 16, Bogut 6-11 1-5 13, Redd 4-8 5-5 16, Sessions 8-17 2-4 18, Alexander 0-2 0-0 0, Lue 0-2 0-0 0, Bell 0-2 2-2 2, Mbah a Moute 4-6 3-5 11, Gadzuric 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 36-81 18-30 94.

NEW YORK—Lee 1-2 1-2 3, Richardson 11-18 1-2 28, Randolph 6-17 2-4 15, Crawford 0-6 1-1 1, Duhon 2-6 0-0 6, Chandler 3-13 1-1 7, Robinson 5-11 2-2 14, Rose 0-0 4-4 4, Collins 0-3 2-2 2, Roberson 2-5 0-0 6. Totals 30-81 14-18 86.

3-Point Goals—Milwaukee 4-11 (Redd 3-3, Jefferson 1-4, Sessions 0-1, Villanueva 0-1, Alexander 0-1, Bell 0-1), New York 12-36 (Richardson 5-11, Duhon 2-5, Robinson 2-5, Roberson 2-5, Randolph 1-2, Collins 0-1, Crawford 0-3, Chandler 0-4). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Milwaukee 64 (Bogut 11), New York 48 (Randolph 13). Assists—Milwaukee 21 (Sessions 8), New York 19 (Crawford, Robinson 4). Total Fouls—Milwaukee 15, New York 26. Technicals—Milwaukee defensive three second, New York defensive three second. A—18,190 (19,763).

MINNESOTA 20 27 26 12—85

OKLAHOMA CITY 20 26 24 18—88

MINNESOTA—Gomes 5-10 0-0 12, Brewer 2-5 2-2 7, Jefferson 11-17 2-2 24, Foye 0-10 2-2 2, Miller 4-8 2-2 10, McCants 1-6 2-2 4, Ollie 1-3 0-0 2, C.Smith 5-10 3-3 13, Carney 3-6 1-1 7, Love 1-2 2-2 4. Totals 33-77 16-16 85.

OKLAHOMA CITY—Green 6-14 0-2 13, Collison 4-8 2-2 10, Petro 2-4 0-0 4, Watson 2-8 0-0 4, Durant 7-21 4-5 18, Mason 3-7 1-2 7, Wilcox 4-9 4-6 12, Westbrook 6-13 2-3 14, J.Smith 3-4 0-0 6, Wilkins 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 37-88 13-20 88.

3-Point Goals—Minnesota 3-12 (Gomes 2-3, Brewer 1-1, Carney 0-1, Love 0-1, McCants 0-1, Miller 0-2, Foye 0-3), Oklahoma City 1-3 (Green 1-1, Westbrook 0-1, Watson 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Minnesota 43 (Jefferson 13), Oklahoma City 59 (Collison 10). Assists—Minnesota 20 (Foye 6), Oklahoma City 15 (Watson 4). Total Fouls—Minnesota 19, Oklahoma City 15. A—18,163 (19,136)