Led by 31 factors by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder rally in second half to beat Minnesota Timberwolves in Recreation 1.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander overcame a sluggish begin to rating 31 factors to steer the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder to a 114-88 house win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Recreation 1 of the Western Convention finals.
It was Gilgeous-Alexander’s fourth consecutive recreation with 30 or extra factors and his eighth in 12 playoff video games this season. He additionally added a game-high 9 assists on Tuesday.
With seven minutes left within the fourth quarter, Gilgeous-Alexander iced the sport with a spectacular play. The All-Star guard drove in direction of the basket and started falling, however not earlier than flipping the ball towards the ring as he went down.
The ball rolled across the rim briefly earlier than dropping by means of, and Jaden McDaniels was referred to as for the foul.
Gilgeous-Alexander completed off the three-point play to place the Thunder up by 14. He completed 10-of-27 from the ground and 0-of-4 from 3-point vary, however he made 11-of-14 from the free-throw line.
Early on, the Timberwolves’ defence gave Gilgeous-Alexander suits, holding him to simply 2-of-13 capturing within the first half.
Oklahoma Metropolis trailed by 9 with just a little greater than a minute remaining within the first half earlier than the Thunder closed on a 6-1 run to chop the deficit to 4.
Within the second half, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault moved Gilgeous-Alexander off the ball, and it helped the 1.98 metre (Six ft, six inch) guard discover a rhythm.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 12 factors within the third quarter as Oklahoma Metropolis outscored Minnesota 32-18.
Whereas Gilgeous-Alexander turned up the strain on offence, it was the Thunder’s defence that performed the most important function within the victory.
Total, Oklahoma Metropolis scored 31 factors on 19 Timberwolves’ turnovers. Minnesota managed solely 10 factors off the Thunder’s 15 giveaways.
Oklahoma Metropolis’s Jalen Williams produced 19 factors and eight rebounds, whereas Chet Holmgren added 15 factors and 7 boards.
The Thunder shot 50 % from the sector and 11-of-21 (52.4 %) from past the arc whereas holding Minnesota to simply 34.9 % from the ground and 15-of-51 (29.4 %) from 3-point vary.
Julius Randle led Minnesota with 28 factors, scoring 20 within the first half. After going 5-for-6 within the first half on 3-point tries, Randle didn’t try a shot from past the arc within the second half.
Timberwolves All-Star guard Anthony Edwards wound up with 18 factors and 9 rebounds. He tried only one shot, a miss, whereas taking part in seven minutes within the fourth quarter.
