Thunder fix crunch time woes, level NBA playoffs series
The young but top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder have finally outplayed the Denver Nuggets in crunch time, winning 92-87 to level their NBA Western Conference semi-final series at 2-2.
All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way in Sunday's away victory, scoring 25 points.
The Thunder trailed 69-63 after three quarters and fell behind by eight when Peyton Watson started the fourth quarter by swishing a hook shot.
But Oklahoma City used an 11-0 run fueled by reserves Cason Wallace, who had a pair of 3-pointers, and Aaron Wiggins, who added another, to take control.
The Nuggets had outlasted the youngest team in the NBA with wins in Games 1 and 3, crediting their playoff experience and championship pedigree.
And they looked poised to put the regular season leaders on the cusp of elimination when Aaron Gordon's turnaround jumper made it 73-66.
This time, however, it was the Thunder who came up big down the stretch and the Nuggets who fumbled away the chance to put OKC in a 3-1 hole.
"We kind of lost our way defensively, especially in the third, but did a great job of course-correcting to start the fourth," said Thunder coach Mark Daigneault.
"That group to start the fourth was huge to give us a lead, and then the defence down the stretch was really, really good."
Game 5 is Tuesday night back in Oklahoma City, where the Thunder had a 43-point blowout of the Nuggets in Game 2.
Nikola Jokic led Denver with 27 points and 13 rebounds. Christian Braun and Jamal Murray each had 17 points and Gordon scored 15. Michael Porter Jr. scored just three points after scoring 15 Friday night.
Wiggins and Wallace each added 11 points and Alex Caruso and Jalen Williams each scored 10. Williams was 2 for 13 from the floor after scoring 32 in Game 3.
Both teams went 3 for 22 from deep in the first half and they slumbered through a combined 25-point first quarter, which tied an NBA playoff record for fewest points in the opening quarter.
Oklahoma City were ahead 42-36 at the half.
"Give their team credit," said Nuggets interim coach David Adelman. "In a disgusting basketball game, they did enough to win."
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Gilgeous-Alexander's first basket of the night was a history-maker. It gave him 3000 points on the season, including the regular season and playoffs. And later in Game 2, he passed New York's Jalen Brunson (514) as the leading overall scorer in these playoffs. But the real milestone for the MVP came a couple hours later, when he and most everybody else on the Thunder got a finals win for the first time. A 19-2 run in the second quarter turned what was a six-point game into a 23-point OKC lead. It might have seemed wobbly a couple of times — an immediate 10-0 rebuttal by Indiana made it 52-39, and the Pacers were within 13 again after Andrew Nembhard's layup with 7:09 left in the third — but the Thunder lead was never in serious doubt. Oklahoma City did what they've done pretty much all season. They came off a loss, this time a 111-110 defeat in Game 1, and blew somebody out as their response. 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That will take place on Wednesday at Indianapolis, in what will be the first finals game in that city in 25 years. Gilgeous-Alexander's first basket of the night was a history-maker. It gave him 3000 points on the season, including the regular season and playoffs. And later in Game 2, he passed New York's Jalen Brunson (514) as the leading overall scorer in these playoffs. But the real milestone for the MVP came a couple hours later, when he and most everybody else on the Thunder got a finals win for the first time. A 19-2 run in the second quarter turned what was a six-point game into a 23-point OKC lead. It might have seemed wobbly a couple of times — an immediate 10-0 rebuttal by Indiana made it 52-39, and the Pacers were within 13 again after Andrew Nembhard's layup with 7:09 left in the third — but the Thunder lead was never in serious doubt. Oklahoma City did what they've done pretty much all season. They came off a loss, this time a 111-110 defeat in Game 1, and blew somebody out as their response. Including the NBA Cup title game, which doesn't count in any standings, the Thunder are now 18-2 this season when coming off a loss. Of those 18 wins, 12 have been by double digits. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has scored 34 points, Alex Caruso added 20 off the bench and Oklahoma City beat Indiana 123-107 to tie the NBA Finals at one game apiece. Jalen Williams scored 19, Aaron Wiggins had 18 and Chet Holmgren finished with 15 for the Thunder. It was the franchise's first finals game win since the opener of the 2012 series against Miami. Tyrese Haliburton scored 17 for the Pacers, who erased a 15-point, fourth-quarter deficit in Game 1 but never made a push on Sunday. Myles Turner scored 16 and Pascal Siakam added 15 for the visitors, the first team since Miami in 2013 to not have a 20-point scorer in the first two games of the finals. "We did some things good tonight. 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Oklahoma City did what they've done pretty much all season. They came off a loss, this time a 111-110 defeat in Game 1, and blew somebody out as their response. Including the NBA Cup title game, which doesn't count in any standings, the Thunder are now 18-2 this season when coming off a loss. Of those 18 wins, 12 have been by double digits.
