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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scores a season-high 43 and hits the go-ahead three as the Thunder beat the Cavaliers 117-112
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a season-high 43 and made a step-back three with 32.6 seconds left as Oklahoma City held off a Cleveland rally from 14 down to win 117-112 and improve to 5-2.
In this article
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a season-high 43 points and hit a go-ahead step-back three with 32.6 seconds left, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 117-112 at Rocket Arena on Monday, November 2. The Thunder bounced back from two straight road losses by 20 or more and are 5-2. Cleveland is 4-3 and lost at home for the first time in four games.
Gilgeous-Alexander made 14 of 35 shots, 4 of 8 threes and 11 of 12 free throws in 39 minutes, with 8 assists, 3 rebounds and 2 steals. Ajay Mitchell scored 20 on 7-of-16 shooting and 6 of 6 at the line, and Isaiah Hartenstein had 5 points and 14 rebounds, 7 of them offensive.
Video: NBA / X.
How it turned
Cleveland led 30-26 after one quarter and the teams traded the lead through the first half. Oklahoma City took control late in the second. Over the last five minutes Gilgeous-Alexander and rookie Bennett Stirtz, who hit a pair of threes, powered a 16-6 run that turned a 43-42 deficit into a 59-48 halftime lead.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s free throws made it 69-55 with 9:26 left in the third, the Thunder’s largest lead at 14. Cleveland then found its range, making eight threes in the quarter, from Evan Mobley, Donovan Mitchell, James Harden (two), Meleek Thomas (two), Sam Merrill and Mario Hezonja, and cutting the margin to 79-78 on a Hezonja layup with 3:12 to go. Oklahoma City answered with a Micah Peavy three and an Aday Mara floater, both set up by Gilgeous-Alexander, and led 90-84 going into the fourth.
The fourth was close throughout. Cleveland outscored Oklahoma City 13-3 across the end of the third and the start of the fourth, and Tyrese Proctor’s free throws gave it a 94-93 lead with 9:14 left. The score was tied at 93, 94, 95, 102, 105, 109 and 112. Ajay Mitchell’s pull-up from 14 feet made it 112-109 with 1:16 left, and Merrill answered with a three to tie it at 112 with 1:01 to play.
Video: NBA / X.
Gilgeous-Alexander then stepped back from 24 feet for the lead. Merrill missed a corner three on the other end, and Mitchell made two free throws with 15.4 seconds left to make it a two-possession game.
The numbers
The Thunder made 21 of 23 free throws (91%) to Cleveland’s 14 of 24 (58%), outscored the Cavaliers 50-30 in the paint and won the rebounding battle 54-46 with 15 offensive rebounds to 11. Cleveland made 18 of 49 threes (37%) and had 31 assists to Oklahoma City’s 18. Each team had 8 turnovers. Oklahoma City shot 43% overall and made 12 of 31 threes.
The Cavaliers’ side
Rookie Meleek Thomas, making the first start of his NBA career, scored 17 on 7-of-16 shooting with 3 threes. Donovan Mitchell also scored 17 on 6-of-17 shooting and had a game-high 11 assists. Evan Mobley had 16 points and 7 rebounds, Jarrett Allen scored 14, and James Harden had 14 points and 6 assists. Hezonja scored 12 off the bench with 8 rebounds. Cleveland played without Peyton Watson (hamstring) and Jaylon Tyson (ankle).
Oklahoma City, still without Chet Holmgren (knee), Jalen Williams (leg), Alex Caruso (ankle), Cason Wallace (shoulder) and Thomas Sorber (knee), got 12 points from Kenrich Williams on 5-of-7 shooting and 10 from Mara, who had 9 rebounds in 20 minutes.
What’s next
The two teams play again on Wednesday, November 4, in Oklahoma City, at 8:00 p.m. ET (3:00 a.m. Thursday Cairo time).
Full box score and play-by-play: Game Center. All-time head-to-head.
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