Gilgeous-Alexander scores 33 as Thunder defeat Spurs
FILE — S hai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder dribbles during the first half against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on January 10, 2021 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Sarah Stier/Getty Images/AFP
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 points, including a big 3-pointer in the final minutes, as the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder came from behind to beat the San Antonio Spurs 107-102 on Thursday.
The Thunder, playing the second game of a road back-to-back after losing in Dallas on Wednesday, had plenty in the tank late in the fourth quarter, jumping from down 89-88 to up 97-91 with 4:40 to play.
San Antonio closed to within 99-97 on Keldon Johnson’s putback layup with 2:42 left, but Gilgeous-Alexander poured in a contested 3-pointer to just beat the shot clock on the ensuing possession, and the Thunder held on down the stretch.
⛈️ @shaiglalex (33 PTS, 8 AST) powers @okcthunder! pic.twitter.com/1afIpoo8Vt
— NBA (@NBA) March 5, 2021
Mike Muscala added 18 points off the bench for Oklahoma City, with Luguentz Dort scoring 15, Isaiah Roby hitting for 12, and Darius Bazley recording 11 points and taking 10 rebounds. The win snapped a two-game losing streak for the Thunder.
DeMar DeRozan led the Spurs with 20 points. Trey Lyles added 15 points and 10 rebounds, Dejounte Murray scored 14, and Patty Mills and Lonnie Walker IV scored 13 and 11 points, respectively, for San Antonio.
Oklahoma City led 27-24 after one period, but the Spurs jumped in front with a 10-2 run over the first 2 1/2 minutes of the second quarter. San Antonio expanded its advantage to as many as 12 points, at 57-45, at the 1:08 mark of the period, and cruised into halftime up 61-50.
Murray led all scorers with 12 points in the first half, with DeRozan adding 10 for the Spurs, who scored 13 points off nine Oklahoma City turnovers in the half and outshot the Thunder 49 percent to 39 percent.
Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 13 points in the first half.
The Thunder roared back to retake the lead, 73-70, via a 14-2 run midway through the third quarter before San Antonio’s bench players helped right the ship, forging their own 8-0 surge to move back in front. The Spurs led 84-81 after three quarters.
A 7-0 run early in the fourth quarter pushed the Thunder to an 88-87 lead, setting the table for the furious finish.
