Shai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder celebrates after scoring against the Washington Wizards in the second half at Capital One Arena on November 16, 2022 in Washington, DC. Rob Carr/Getty Images/AFP
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander capped a 42-point performance by draining a 3-pointer with 1.9 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to lift the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder to a 121-120 victory over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s heroics came on the heels of Bradley Beal sinking a fadeaway jumper near the baseline that gave Washington a 120-118 lead with 6.7 seconds remaining.
Gilgeous-Alexander also had seven assists and six rebounds. He made 14 of 22 shots from the floor and 12 of 17 from the foul line.
“We gave them a little bit of a lead tonight and we had to fight to get back,” Gilgeous-Alexander, who matched his career-high with 42 points — 30 of them in the second half — said in a post-game television interview.
“Feels good,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Last week or so, same situation, we didn’t close the game out the way we wanted to. We’ve learned from it, and we got better. That’s our goal every day.”
Luguentz Dort scored 16 points and Josh Giddey added 11 points and six rebounds for the Thunder, who overcame 17- and 16-point deficits to record their third win in four games.
Oklahoma City shot a robust 54.3 percent from the floor (44 of 81) and 51.6 percent from 3-point range (16 of 31).
"It's fun, I'm not going to let it get to my head though."
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on receiving MVP chants on the road after his game-winner! pic.twitter.com/QykjMwRtwu
— NBA (@NBA) November 17, 2022
Kristaps Porzingis collected 27 points and nine rebounds and Beal scored 15 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter. Beal was making his return from a five-game absence due to NBA health and safety protocols.
Kyle Kuzma recorded 18 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for the Wizards, who saw their four-game winning streak come to a halt.
Rui Hachimura scored 14 points off the bench for Washington.
Washington built a 31-14 lead in the first quarter due in large part to its sharp shooting from the perimeter. Gilgeous-Alexander scored seven points in just over one minute late in the quarter to spark Oklahoma City, which erased the deficit by pulling even at 37-37 early in the second.
The Wizards once again found their stroke from the perimeter to build a 16-point lead in the second and they claimed a 67-54 advantage at halftime. The Thunder countered as Gilgeous-Alexander scored 19 points during the third quarter to give his team a two-point advantage.