The Oklahoma City Thunder improved to 21-1 with a 12-point win over the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center, 124-112. Somewhat unexpectedly, it ended up being one of the more interesting games of the season.

Golden State hung around in the first half and, in the final minutes of the second quarter, the Warriors were still within striking distance. It was a 10-point game and they were trying to get into halftime with a manageable single-digit deficit. Instead, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander completely flipped the script, scoring nine points in that final 1:16 to push Oklahoma City’s lead to 19. At the break, it looked like another game the Thunder might run away with.

It’s worth noting Steph Curry did not play because of injury. Jimmy Butler was ruled out at halftime with a knee issue and Draymond Green dealt with foul trouble, so this was a pretty depleted Warriors team. Given all that, a 19-point halftime hole felt massive.

Golden State answered in the third. The Warriors took that quarter 44-28, carried all the momentum into the fourth and actually led late. They were hitting everything. Pat Spencer went nuclear in the second half, finishing with 17 points on 8-of-14 shooting and having one of the best offensive nights of his career. Seth Curry — not Steph, but Seth, in his Warriors debut — had 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting and 2-of-3 from deep. Buddy Hield added 13 off the bench. Gary Payton II had 13 off the bench. The Warriors' bench was rolling, and that’s a big reason the Thunder was on its heels in the fourth.

On the Thunder side, the star trio really showed out. This was Jalen Williams’ best game since coming back from injury. He made big shots in the clutch alongside Gilgeous-Alexander, finishing with 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting, 2-of-6 from three, six assists and three rebounds. Chet Holmgren was awesome with 21 points, eight rebounds and three assists, giving Oklahoma City a reliable scoring and rim pressure outlet whenever Golden State loaded up on Shai. Between those three, the Thunder always had an answer when things got tight.

Bench production was a completely different story. The Warriors’ second unit exploded, while Oklahoma City had just one double-digit scorer off the bench in Aaron Wiggins with 11 points. Overall, the Thunder bench got vastly outplayed. That isn’t exactly shocking, given Lu Dort, Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein were all out, which pushes usual bench pieces into the starting lineup and leaves the second unit pretty depleted.

But just like he closed the first half, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander closed the second. He checked back in with 6:35 left and the Thunder trailing 104-100. From that point on, Oklahoma City outscored Golden State 24-8, completely wiping out the Warriors’ momentum and slamming the door. Shai hit huge shots and showed a ton of emotion, which we don’t see from him very often.

Even against a shorthanded Warriors team that is now 11-11, this was an impressive, gritty win. In a season full of blowouts, this is the kind of game Mark Daigneault and his staff probably like seeing. It forced the Thunder to take a punch, respond and gain some real late-game reps. Next up, Oklahoma City returns home to host the Dallas Mavericks on Friday.