The game was seemingly under control, with the Thunder leading by 11 points with just over eight minutes to go in the third quarter. What ensued after that was something the Thunder didn’t expect.
A 10-2 run by the Boston Celtics to close the third and an 11-2 burst to start the fourth quarter flipped this game on its head, leaving Head Coach Billy Donovan’s club with an 100-85 loss to chew on as it travels to Memphis to face the Grizzlies on Monday night.
“The game is so long they are going to make runs back and forth,” Donovan said. “They made some threes that cut into our lead there. We had a couple possessions that were empty. They continued to score. They scored at a pretty good clip. But we really weren’t able to get the ball to go in the basket very much.”
Despite taking charge in the second quarter and carrying that momentum over through the first few minutes after halftime, the Thunder didn’t have a counter-punch to Boston’s run.
“We just have to do a better job of staying on a steady keel and staying locked in,” guard Dion Waiters said. “We made our run and it’s the NBA, so we knew they were going to make a run. I felt like we didn’t get key stops down the stretch and they threw a zone at us that threw us off a little bit.”
“They made a lot of shots and a lot of offensive rebounds. We couldn’t answer it,” said center Enes Kanter. “We have to finish the quarters well, especially in the second half. We have to forget about this game and move forward.”
In the fourth quarter, the Thunder shot just 2-for-17 and scored only 11 points. While Serge Ibaka registered a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double and Russell Westbrook knocked down 15 of 17 free throw attempts, the Thunder’s offense struggled to get much going throughout the second half.
With 18 turnovers, only 28 points in the paint and only three fast break points, the Thunder didn’t have its usual offensive verve, which led to a 36.4 percent shooting night and a 6-for-25 mark from behind the three-point line. As the team learns from this game, it will look at areas where it can improve, particularly when it comes to moving the ball through the middle of the floor to get the defense to move and to generate open shots.
“There are times where we’re getting the ball to really good areas of the floor and we have to recognize and identify the next pass to the next pass sometimes,” Donovan echoed.
“We didn’t do a great job tonight of moving the ball around and getting the ball to the other side and having their defense shift,” Waiters explained. “We just have to do a better job of getting one another involved.”
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By the Numbers
10 – Rebounds for Serge Ibaka on the night, in addition to 16 points and three blocks
15-for-17 – Free throw shooting numbers for Russell Westbrook, part of a 23-for-29 free throw mark for the team
26 – The point swing in the second half, as the Thunder’s 11-point lead turned into a 15-point deficit by the final buzzer - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Last Word
“We didn’t pick our intensity up, physically. We have to do a better job of locking in on what we’re supposed to do and do it for 48 minutes.” – point guard Russell Westbrook