By Brandon Walker for Urban Media Today
Washington, DC—Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points on 17-of-27 shooting. Isaiah Hartenstein totaled 20 rebounds and 10 assists. The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Washington Wizards 132-111 Saturday evening at Capital One Arena for their 11th straight win.
Alex Sarr led the scoring for the Wizards (16-54) with a 15-foot basket. AJ Mitchell answered with a three-pointer as Oklahoma City (56-15) started an 11-2 run by executing its motion offense. Hartenstein scored in the paint and grabbed rebounds at an alarming rate against the home team. But the Wizards stayed in the fight. Justin Champagne made a three-pointer to put the Wizards up 19-17. Aaron Wiggins then made a three-pointer to tie the game. Bub Carrington followed with a three-pointer. The teams were tied at 32 at the end of the first quarter, a sign of the Wizards’ resilience.
Tristan Vukcevic started the Wizards well with a three-pointer to open the second quarter. Isaiah Joe answered with a three-pointer. AJ Mitchell put the Thunder in front with another three, followed by Jared McClain, as the Oklahoma City lead grew to eight points. Jamir Watkins sank back-to-back three-pointers and tied the game midway through the second quarter. Gilgeous-Alexander then took over, scoring at will. Towards the end of the first half, an altercation occurred under the Thunder basket between Champagne and Jaylin Williams. Both players, along with Mitchell and Cason Wallace, were ejected.
Halftime: Oklahoma City 69, Washington 64.
The Thunder outrebounded the Wizards 26-17 in the first half, a key stat.
Bilal Coulibaly and Will Riley opened the scoring for the Wizards with back-to-back baskets. However, Chet Holmgren answered with two quick baskets for the Thunder to reclaim the lead. After Sarr sank a three-pointer, OKC sparked a 7-0 run as SGA scored twice. Nevertheless, Washington kept responding and ensured the game did not slip away. Later, SGA hit a three-pointer and beat the buzzer at the end of the third quarter. As a result, the Thunder led 103-96 after three quarters.
At the start of the fourth quarter, two Chet Holmgren baskets and a McCain three-pointer put the Thunder up by 14. After that, both teams went cold, unable to score. The Thunder’s lead increased to 18, as the Wizards remained scoreless for the first 5:49 of the fourth quarter. Eventually, Bub Carrington snapped the drought with a three-pointer, but by then, OKC had the game in hand.
The Thunder won by outrebounding the Wizards 55-34 and outscoring them 64-40 in the paint.
McClain and Holmgren each scored 18 for Oklahoma City. Holmgren added 10 rebounds. Kenrich Williams scored 11 off the bench. Mitchell had 14 points before his ejection. Coulibaly led the Wizards with 21. Carrington scored 19 points, shooting 4-for-7 from three, and had 14 points and eight assists. Anthony Gill and Watkins each scored 13 for the Wizards. Jaden Hardy added 10 points.
Oklahoma will stay on the road to face the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night. Washington will head to Madison Square Garden on Sunday evening to play the New York Knicks, hoping to avoid tying its longest losing streak in franchise history.
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