After getting beat by the San Antonio Spurs three times in the past month, the Oklahoma City Thunder bounced back in a big way on Tuesday night.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have been the best team in the NBA this season, having won a championship a year ago, but one team that has consistently given OKC problems is the San Antonio Spurs. Coming into Tuesday night, the Spurs had beaten the Thunder three times over the past several weeks, including two convincing double-digit wins.
For the fourth matchup already this season, the two met again at Paycom Center, and this time, Oklahoma City finally got its revenge.
The game was back and forth throughout the first half, with both teams playing strong defense and making tough, contested shots. As has often been the case for the Thunder, the game flipped in the third quarter. Jalen Williams and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander combined for 25 points in the period, while the Spurs scored just 24 points as a team. That swing coming out of halftime created a 16-point flip, driven by elite shot-making from OKC’s two stars and a defensive effort that completely disrupted San Antonio’s rhythm.
From there, the Thunder focused on maintaining control. Oklahoma City narrowly won the fourth quarter by a plus-two margin, but the lead never truly felt threatened. The Thunder led by as many as 24 points and ultimately closed out a much-needed 21-point win that felt significant given the recent history between the two teams. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 34 points, five rebounds, five assists and four blocks, while Williams added 20 points. Chet Holmgren had a quieter scoring night with eight points but made his impact felt with 10 rebounds and three blocks. Alex Caruso provided a huge spark off the bench with 13 points and a team-best plus-27 in his minutes.
Overall, it was a complete team effort from Oklahoma City. The Thunder won the rebounding battle, moved the ball more effectively, shot better from three and from the free-throw line and, most importantly, made the shots that had eluded them in the first three meetings.
Now, OKC will look to carry that momentum on the road as the Thunder travels to Houston to face another Western Conference contender in the Rockets on Thursday night.