The Night Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder Stole Victory from the Warriors

The Warriors finally seemed to be on the right track. The return of Stephen Curry (25 points, 6 rebounds) and the awakening of Andrew Wiggins (31 points, 5/8 3-pointers) had put them at +18 points in the third quarter and 1.7 seconds from victory before that Chet Holmgreen comes to ruin everything with a 3-pointer from elsewhere at the buzzer. In overtime, the Thunder systematically put the ball in the hands of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the latter responded. What a victory for the Thunder! What a heartbreak for the Warriors!

With the return of Stephen Curry, the Warriors’ attack is more incisive (31 points, 47% shooting, 9 assists) than during Thursday’s match but the defense continues to suffer. The Thunder remain the same bases with 56% on shots and 60% on 3-points, with a devilishly efficient Chet Holmgren, to take the advantage (33-31).

However, Golden State’s good period is confirmed. Their defense raises the tone, they contest drives and execute their rotations with more precision. They finished the quarter with a 28-14, thanks to 14 points from the Wiggins – Thompson duo and three award-winning shots in a row to take a ten-point lead (61-51). They hit the nail on the head after returning from the locker room thanks to the Curry – Thompson – Wiggins trio to increase the gap to +18 (79-61).

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, boss size!

The Thunder nevertheless took advantage of an opposing relaxation to return to the match. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scores 13 points in six minutes to lead a 24-8 which brings OKC to -2 (87-85). Jalen Williams, so far discreet, takes over by scoring 8 of the Thunder’s first 15 points in the last quarter to give his team the advantage (100-98).

With four minutes to play, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren hit the nail on the head (108-102), but the Warriors went on the attack again. Curry, Paul and Wiggins hit the mark twice from afar to return to a tie (114-114). Andrew Wiggins believes he will give the Warriors victory with his 5th 3-pointer of the game two seconds from the buzzer, but Chet Holmgren sends everyone into overtime with a long shot from elsewhere (117-117)!

Faced with the Warriors on the knees, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander takes matters into his own hands. He scores 10 of Oklahoma City’s 13 points and counters a 3-pointer from Stephen Curry to give his team the victory. Despite the best for the Warriors, they have a sixth defeat in a row.

WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER

– Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on another planet. Well defended in the first half (8 points, 4/10 on shots), the Thunder star gave a demonstration in the last 18 minutes of the match and the five additional minutes. With his team at -18, he scored 15 of the Thunder’s 24 points late in the third quarter to bring them back to -2. He then scored 7 points in money time, before dominating overtime, scoring 10 of the Thunder’s 13 points. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander therefore scored 32 points in the last 23 minutes of the match, 14/19 on shots! He made a festival at mid-distance, managing to create the necessary space on each possession to shoot over the arms of Jonathan Kuminga and Andrew Wiggins, totally helpless.

– Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams also shine. With 19 points at the break, Chet Holmgren was the best player on his team before Shai Gilgeous-Alexander woke up. The rookie continued his momentum in the second half, showing his full potential by scoring under the circle, in transition and from 3-point range. He was decisive at the end of the match but almost cost his team the victory. In the last 90 seconds, he made two errors, a 24-second violation and a missed layup to put the THunder at +2, but made up for it in the most beautiful way with his shot at the buzzer to establish his career points record. Jalen Williams was also decisive. He took over from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the start of the fourth quarter to put the Thunder at +6, in the same style as his teammate. The Thunder therefore have a young “Big Three” who is not only talented but also combative. At -18, the three players simply refused to give up.

– La renaissance d’Andrew Wiggins. From the warm-up, Andrew Wiggins seemed like he was in his match. He confirmed it in the first half, before notably a key passage in the second quarter where he connected two mid-range shots and a winning shot. More than a new address, it was his decision-making which was much faster than in the last matches. He continued to be incisive in the second half, and he was rewarded with 13 points in the last quarter at 4/4 from distance. His fifth award-winning shot of the match should have given the Warriors victory and ended this match in the most beautiful way, but Chet Holmgren decided otherwise.

Golden State / 123 Tirs Rebonds Joueurs Min Tirs 3pts LF O D T Pd Fte Int Bp Ct +/- Pts Eval K. Looney 35 3/5 0/0 0/0 5 9 14 5 0 1 1 1 -1 6 24 A. Wiggins 35 12/19 5/8 2/4 0 1 1 3 4 0 0 1 +6 31 27 C. Paul 38 4/9 4/7 0/0 1 3 4 11 3 3 0 1 +3 12 26 S. Curry 40 8/21 5/11 4/4 0 6 6 3 2 0 2 0 0 25 19 K. Thompson 37 5/13 3/9 3/3 0 2 2 4 4 0 4 0 +4 16 10 D. Saric 18 3/9 0/2 0/0 2 6 8 1 1 0 1 0 -6 6 8 J. Kuminga 20 6/10 0/2 1/2 2 3 5 2 2 1 3 1 -18 13 14 M. Moody 18 1/4 0/3 4/4 2 2 4 1 2 1 2 0 -8 6 7 B. Podziemski 25 2/6 1/4 3/4 1 3 4 3 0 0 3 0 -15 8 7 44/96 18/46 17/21 13 35 48 33 18 6 16 4 123 142 Oklahoma City / 130 Tirs Rebonds Joueurs Min Tirs 3pts LF O D T Pd Fte Int Bp Ct +/- Pts Eval C. Holmgren 37 14/22 2/5 6/7 4 6 10 5 2 2 4 1 +9 36 41 Jal. Williams 41 8/16 0/2 6/6 0 6 6 3 2 1 1 0 +6 22 23 S. Gilgeous-Alexander 41 18/29 2/3 2/2 1 5 6 6 1 2 3 2 +7 40 42 J. Giddey 22 4/10 1/2 2/2 2 3 5 2 2 1 0 2 +4 11 15 L. Dort 27 1/6 1/4 0/0 1 6 7 2 2 0 0 0 -11 3 7 Jay. Williams 6 1/1 0/0 0/0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 -9 2 4 K. Williams 22 0/3 0/1 1/2 1 3 4 1 2 1 0 0 +7 1 3 I. Joe 27 4/9 2/4 0/0 0 4 4 3 2 1 0 1 +17 10 14 A. Wiggins 6 0/0 0/0 0/0 0 2 2 1 0 0 2 0 +2 0 1 V. Micic 8 1/1 0/0 0/0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 -1 2 3 C. Wallace 28 1/3 0/2 1/1 0 1 1 2 3 0 0 0 +4 3 4 52/100 8/23 18/20 9 38 47 26 16 8 10 6 130 157

How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.

2023-11-19 05:10:55
#Chet #Holmgren #Shai #GilgeousAlexander #torpedo #Warriors