The Oklahoma City Thunder set new records during last night’s 149-106 Game 2 win over the hapless Denver Nuggets.
Oklahoma City set the tone early by outscoring Denver 45-21 in the first period, which tied a franchise playoff record for the most points scored in a quarter. And with an 87-56 halftime lead, the Oklahoma City Thunder broke the league record for the most points scored in a half.
The hosts went up as high as 48 points, which equaled the fourth-largest margin after three quarters in NBA history. The team also outscored the Denver Nuggets by 51 points in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 30 minutes – the best plus-minus in a playoff game since the statistic was first tracked in 1997-98.
Gilgeous-Alexander led all scorers with 34 points, four rebounds, and eight assists on 11-for-13 shooting from the field and a perfect 11-for-11 from the free throw line. Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein, Isaiah Joe, Luguentz Dort, Aaron Wiggins, and Ajay Mitchell added 17, 15, 14, 14, 12, 10, and 10 points.
Oklahoma City Thunder News: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander reacts to team’s record-setting performance in Game 2
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wasn’t too high about the Oklahoma City Thunder’s rout of the Denver Nuggets. During the postgame press conference, the MVP frontrunner said they played with a huge sense of urgency yesterday.
“We knew what was at stake tonight. We came out desperate,” Gilgeous-Alexander explained via ESPN’s Tim MacMahon.
“I think it’s important to take the emotion out. Winning by a hundred or winning by two, it’s still 1-1, and I think that’s very important,” he continued. “Like I said, especially in the series, every game’s going to look different. People are going to make adjustments. It’s going to be a different crowd, a different feel. You’re going to start hot; you’re going to start cold, everything’s going to look different. It’s important to turn the page.”
