Thunder overcome Nikola Jokic’s enormous evening to seize 3-2 sequence lead over Nuggets
OKLAHOMA CITY — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 factors, and the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets 112-105 on Tuesday evening to go up 3-2 of their Western Convention semifinal sequence.
Oklahoma Metropolis overcame a 44-point, 15-rebound evening from Denver’s Nikola Jokić.
The Thunder can clinch the sequence on Thursday in Denver.
Gilgeous-Alexander made 12 of 23 subject objectives and bounced again from a gradual begin to lead six gamers in double figures.
“What the nice gamers do is that they rise within the face of these challenges and adversities,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault stated. “And I simply thought he obtained an increasing number of composed as the sport went on. And even supposing the stress was mounting and it obtained hotter in there, he obtained cooler and simply form of settled into it, made the precise performs, let the sport inform him what to do.”
Jokić made 17 of 25 pictures.
Denver’s Jamal Murray scored 28 factors, however he made simply 10 of 27 pictures.
No different Denver participant scored greater than 13 factors.
“This can be a actually disappointing loss,” Denver interim coach David Adelman stated. “The blokes in there needs to be dissatisfied. It’s a heavy loss and we’ve to bounce again shortly to win Recreation 6 and provides ourselves an opportunity to come back again, have a sport like this, however end it.”
Oklahoma Metropolis ran out to a 12-2 lead, and it regarded prefer it would possibly prove just like the Thunder’s blowout victory in Recreation 2.
Denver made certainly one of its first 9 pictures, and that was a putback by Jokić.
Denver rallied and led by 11 within the second quarter, however Oklahoma Metropolis closed sturdy and trailed 56-54 at halftime.
Jokić had 19 factors and 9 rebounds earlier than the break.
Murray scored 13 factors within the third quarter and Jokić added 12 to assist the Nuggets take an 86-78 lead into the fourth.
Nonetheless, there have been missed alternatives.
“It felt like each time we had an opportunity to return up 12, or get it again at 14, we wouldn’t make the shot they usually’d run out and make a basket or rating in transition,” Adelman stated. “So it compounded itself.”
Oklahoma Metropolis’s Lu Dort, who scored three whole factors within the first three quarters, hit a trio of 3-pointers in a two-minute span to chop Denver’s result in 92-90 halfway by the fourth.
Jokić hit a deep fadeaway 3-pointer to tie the sport at 103 earlier than Oklahoma Metropolis closed it out.
Jalen Williams’ 3-pointer with 1:18 remaining gave the Thunder a 106-103 lead, and Gilgeous-Alexander’s three with 48 seconds to go pushed Oklahoma Metropolis’s result in six.
“I assumed we executed in addition to we’ve within the playoffs down the stretch in an in depth sport,” Daigneault stated.
