The Oklahoma City Thunder once again didn’t need Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the fourth quarter as they dominated the Portland Trail Blazers 122-95 Sunday night at the Paycom Center.
Oklahoma City (17-1) suffered its only loss against Portland and has never lost since (nine consecutive victories). The only team that had a better start to the season than the Thunder through 18 games was the Golden State Warriors in 2015-16 when they finished the season with a 73-9 record.
Gilgeous-Alexander continued his incredible start to the season by scoring 37 points in just three quarters (30 minutes). SGA made 13 of its 18 shots and all nine of its free throws.
Ajay Mitchell was perfect on eight pitches, scoring 20 points.
Oklahoma City continues to win despite injuries. Jalen Williams is still awaiting his return after wrist surgery while Aaron Wiggins missed the game with a left thigh strain.
Nonetheless, Oklahoma City’s average points margin during its winning streak is 22.3 points, with the closest result being a difference of 13 points.
Jerami Grant led Portland with 21 points. Deni Avdija, who led the Trail Blazers with 26 points in the first meeting between the two teams, finished with 11 points thanks to 4 of 16 shots in the return game.
Portland guards Shaedon Sharpe and Jrue Holiday were both out with right calf injuries. Sharpe is the team’s second leading scorer and Holiday is one of the team’s best defenders.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 17 points in the first quarter, setting the tone and helping the Thunder take a 39-18 lead.
In the second quarter, Oklahoma City’s Mitchell drove to the basket before Portland’s Rayan Rupert hit him in the head while trying to block his shot. The Thunder rushed to protect Mitchell and Oklahoma City’s Isaiah Hartenstein received a technical foul for escalating the situation. Mitchell made the second of his two free throws on the shooting foul, then scored on a floater to give the Thunder a 49-25 lead.
The match was never close in the second half.
The two teams will meet next Sunday in Portland.
Elsewhere in the NBA:
Miami 127 – Philadelphia 117
MIA : Norman Powell scored 32 points and Kel’el Ware had a double of 20 points and 16 rebounds to give the Heat a fourth straight victory.
PHI : Andre Drummond was dominant in the bottle collecting 24 rebounds. He added 14 points.
Charlotte 110 – Atlanta 113
CHA : The Hornets lost for a sixth consecutive game despite Kon Knueppel’s sparkling 28-point performance. He broke the Hornets franchise record by making seven three-pointers.
ATL : Jalen Johnson led the Hawks in scoring with 28 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds, and Atlanta posted a seventh victory in nine games.
Orlando 129 – Boston 138
ORL : The Magic snapped their three-game winning streak with three of their top five scorers missing. Jett Howard finished the game with 30 points.
BOS : Jaylen Brown scored 35 points, Anfernee Simons added 23 points and Payton Pritchard scored 19 points. Boston almost blew a 26-point lead in the third quarter.
Clippers 105 – Cleveland 120
LAC : James Harden, who set a franchise record Saturday with 55 points for Los Angeles in a win at Charlotte, missed all eight of his three-pointers and finished with 19 points. Ivica Zubac led the Clippers with 33 points and 18 rebounds.
CLE : Donovan Mitchell recorded 37 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
San Antonio 102 – Phoenix 111
AT : De’Aaron Fox led the Spurs in scoring with 26 points, including 14 on free throws.
PHO : Dillon Brooks and Devin Booker led the Suns with 25 and 24 points. Mark Williams (14 pts and 11 rebounds) and Jordan Goodwin (15 pts and 10 rebounds) scored doubles.
Lakers 108 – Utah 106
LAL : Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 33 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. LeBron James scored 17 points and eight assists.
UTA : Keyonte George led the Jazz with 27 points.
