Thunder bounce back from historic loss, beat Pistons to snap skid
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder gives fists bumps after the game against the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena on December 06, 2021 in Detroit, Michigan. Nic Antaya/Getty Images/AFP
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 30 points and 13 assists and Oklahoma City bounced back from the most lopsided loss in NBA history and ended an eight-game losing streak by rallying past the host Detroit Pistons 114-103 on Monday.
Luguentz Dort supplied 28 points for the Thunder, who lost by an NBA-record 73 points to Memphis in their last game on Thursday. Kenrich Williams and Josh Giddey tossed in 12 points apiece for Oklahoma City, which outscored Detroit 42-22 in the fourth quarter.
Cade Cunningham’s 28 points, 11 rebounds and five assists led the Pistons, who squandered a 12-point, fourth-quarter lead and lost for the ninth consecutive time. Jerami Grant had 20 points, six rebounds and five assists and Saddiq Bey added 15 points and seven rebounds.
30 points & a career-high 13 dimes for @shaiglalex in the @okcthunder win! ⛈️ pic.twitter.com/F5QYvQulac
— NBA (@NBA) December 7, 2021
The Pistons had three players in double figures by halftime while racing to a 63-50 lead. Cunningham led the way with 15 points as Detroit made 10 of 19 3-point attempts prior to the break. Gilgeous-Alexander had 14 points for the Thunder.
Detroit, which held a 37-28 lead after the first quarter, led by as many as 18.
The Pistons led 73-57 four minutes into the third quarter after a Cunningham 3-pointer. Oklahoma City then went on a 10-0 run that included six points for Gilgeous-Alexander. The Thunder didn’t get any closer the remainder of the quarter, as Detroit carried an 81-72 lead into the fourth quarter.
Trey Lyles made a 3-pointer to give the Pistons a 12-point advantage. Oklahoma City then went on a 9-0 spurt that included a dunk, two assists and a block by Williams.
The teams traded baskets midway through the quarter and when Dort made a 3-pointer with 4:44 left, Oklahoma City trailed 97-94. A Mike Muscala dunk cut Detroit’s lead to one and a Gilgeous-Alexander layup gave the Thunder the lead. Muscala then hit a 3-pointer and Dort converted a three-point play to finish off a 13-0 run.
That made it 104-97 with 2:43 left, and the Pistons couldn’t get closer than five points the rest of the way.
