Oklahoma City Thunder kept their playoff hopes alive with a 102-90 win over the San Antonio Spurs on the road on Sunday behind 21 points and 10 assists from Jalen Williams and 15 points and 11 rebounds from Josh Giddey.
Beginning on Saturday night in New Orleans, the Thunder were able to sweep a back-to-back on the road. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, their best scorer, was sidelined with an abdominal ailment and did not participate.
In the second quarter, the Thunder built a 17-point lead; they maintained a five-point advantage at the break and a seven-point advantage going into the last ten minutes of regulation. The Thunder cruised to their fifth win in six games, facing little real resistance in the final minutes.
Oklahoma City was led by Ousmane Dieng’s 17 points, who set a career best, and Luguentz Dort’s 12, with contributions from Dario Saric’s 10.
Watch the short highlights of Jalen Williams and Josh Giddey
Zach Collins scored 23 points and grabbed 11 boards to lead San Antonio, while Devonte’ Graham added 20, Keita Bates-Diop added 12, and Doug McDermott chipped in 11. The Spurs started three players who were out with injuries: Keldon Johnson (left foot pain), Jeremy Sochan (right knee soreness), and Tre Jones after their Friday triumph over West-leading Denver (non-COVID illness).
After falling behind by five points early on Sunday, Oklahoma City rallied to take a 10-point lead on a layup by Gorgui Dieng with 20.2 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
By the 9:12 mark of the second quarter, the Thunder had built a 36-19 lead, their highest of the half, thanks to a 14-point run capped by a running 3-pointer from Aaron Wiggins. A 3-pointer and three free throws by Oklahoma City’s Lindy Waters III in the period of 25 seconds gave the Thunder a 15-point advantage after some back-and-forth play.
In response, the Spurs scored 20 of the quarter’s last 30 points to cut the deficit to 52-47 going into halftime.
After one quarter of play, Collins had 13 points to lead all scorers, with Dieng leading the Thunder with 11. The Spurs limited the Thunder to 33.3% shooting but turned the ball over 11 times themselves before halftime.
Collins’ step-back 3-pointer with 9:12 left in the third stanza knotted the score at 59 for the Spurs. The next 10 points were scored by Oklahoma City, allowing them to reclaim the lead. Explore here at toponlinesportsbetting.ph to learn the latest NBA news and updates for your favorite teams and players.