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Tim McMahon
OKLAHOMA CITY – On Christmas Day, after losing three times to the same foe in a 12-day span, the reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander clearly stated that San Antonio Spurs proved to be better than oklahoma city thunder.
The defending champion replied 119-98 home win Tuesday night in the latest rematch between the top two teams in the Western Conference standings.
That loss prompted Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored a game-high 34 points, to reach another simple conclusion.
Gilgeous-Alexander said, “Tonight’s result tells us that when we play a certain way, with a certain sense of urgency, with a certain sense of strength, with aggression and attention to detail, it doesn’t matter who is on the other side.” “It’s nothing I expected. I knew if we played a certain way, we’d be able to beat anybody in the world.”
The Thunder admitted that there was an increased sense of intensity in the atmosphere at the Paycom Center due to the upstart Spurs’ success against them this season.
San Antonio snapped Oklahoma City’s 16-game winning streak with a 111–109 victory in the NBA Cup Semifinals on December 13, only the Thunder’s second loss after a record 24–1 start.
The Spurs then picked up two solid wins in a three-day span: a 30-point loss at San Antonio on December 23 and a 15-point win at Oklahoma City on Christmas Day. which was widely discussed Victor WembanyamaThe K Spurs are emerging as a rival to Oklahoma City’s potential dynasty.
But Tuesday night’s game was much more typical for the Thunder (34-7), who have an average differential of plus-13.2 points, putting them on pace to break the NBA record for point differential set by Oklahoma City during their 68-win campaign last season. Physical, strong defense fueled an efficient offense as Oklahoma City outscored San Antonio 40–24 in the third quarter to open the game.
“Every game feels like a rivalry at some point because we’re defending champions and teams are throwing their best punch every single game,” the Thunder forward said. jalen williamsWho scored 20 points. “But I will say that this team plays us 48 minutes of basketball where we really have to pay attention, and it’s just fun to play against them all season long. You can feel when we’re playing that we’re making them better and they’re making us better all season. But as far as rivalries go, I don’t get too caught up in that.”
On the other hand, the Thunder’s fan base certainly seems to encourage the rivalry.
Vembanyama in particular was repeatedly criticized throughout the game. The crowd objected to some foul calls that went in Wembanyama’s favor as he spread out on the court, but Oklahoma City’s physical defense took its toll on the 7-foot-4 center, who scored only seven of his 17 points and grabbed only two of his seven rebounds in the second half.
“Of course they came prepared, but I don’t think they changed a lot of things,” Wembanyama said. “He was confident in his identity.”
The Thunder were particularly effective at attacking the basket despite the presence of Wembanyama, the NBA’s leading shot blocker. Oklahoma City finished with 56 points in the paint.
According to GeniusIQ, the Thunder made 10-of-14 shots (71.4%) that Wembanyama contested, in contrast to 16-of-39 (41.0%) on such attempts in the first three meetings between the teams. This was the highest field goal percentage ever allowed on contested shots by Vembanyama this season.
“It’s never about the other team,” said Gilgeous-Alexander, who had 16 points in the paint. “It’s always about us. We got there because we focused on ourselves.”
