Darius Bazley and Lu Dort
(Coby Van Loan | OKC Thunder)

Game Recap: Thunder vs. Warriors

By Paris Lawson | Broadcast and Digital Reporter | okcthunder.com

Highlights: OKC vs. GSW

THE BIG PICTURE

It appeared Golden State had commanding control of the ball game as its lead swelled to 16 points in the second half. Unrelenting, the Thunder rallied in the fourth quarter behind defensive stops and shaved the deficit down to just five points with two minutes left in the ball game. Timely 3-pointers would allow the Warriors to walk away with the 110-98 win, but not without a battle down the stretch. 

MOMENTS FROM THE 48

Fourth-Quarter Flurry

After the Thunder took a 23-20 lead in the first 12 minutes of action, Golden State responded and built up its double-digit lead in the second quarter where it outscored the Thunder 36-23. The Warriors would use the momentum to generate a lead of as many as 16 points before the Thunder put up a resilient flurry in the final moments to make it a two-possession ball game. 

It started with a perfectly orchestrated and executed inbounds play that resulted in a layup for Kenrich Williams from Josh Giddey. That effort ignited a 6-0 run by the Thunder to force a timeout by Steve Kerr. Out of the timeout, Lu Dort drew his third offensive foul of the night to force a turnover which led to a layup on the other end of the floor by Giddey. The rookie’s layup brought the margin to just five points with 2:39 left in the game. 

Golden State answered with a pair of unanswered dagger 3-pointers from Klay Thompson to extend the lead back out to three possessions. Steph Curry sealed the deal with a triple with just 33 seconds left to secure the 110-98 victory.

“I thought, especially in the second half, we really competed and did it together,” said Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault. “It's an acquired skill to play against that team. And I thought we certainly can learn a lot execution wise, but the competitive level was where it needed to be, especially in the second half.”

High-IQ Play

Derrick Favors and Aaron Wiggins squared off in a jump ball at the Thunder basket. There were only 2.5 seconds left on the shot clock. 

Favors won the tip, but rather than go up to wrangle the ball with two hands, Thunder rookie Josh Giddey tipped the ball toward Darius Bazley who elevated over Andrew Wiggins and tipped the ball through the rim. The play was an example of high-level awareness, IQ and savvy that the Thunder works to develop within its players through each moment of the game, even when the clock isn’t ticking.

“Those guys are situationally aware. It's part of the game,” said Daigneault “Games are two hours and 10 minutes, and the ball is live for 48 minutes. So there's an hour and 20 minutes or so, where you can be engaged and you want to be winning those minutes. The way to do it is to be present and be aware. To our credit in that situation, we did it.”

“[Kevon] Looney came to get the ball and Baze was wide open so I kind of tipped it to him and he knew right away that there was a second on the shot clock so we had to get it up,” explained Giddey who finished with his 13th double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Bazley’s Big Night

The tip-in basket marked two of Bazley’s season-high-tying 20 points in the game, 13 of which came in the third quarter. The third-year wing toggled back and forth between time at the four and the five which also triggered a variety of matchups throughout the night. For most of the game though, Bazley drew the assignment of Klay Thompson who, prior to the final two 3-pointers of the game, was held to just 4-of-13 from the field and 1-of-6 from deep. 

Offensively, Bazley went 8-of-16 from the field and 2-of-4 from deep to go along with eight rebounds. 

“He was in there. He was competing,” said Daigneault. “We're like toggling him between those things, and for him to be able to do that, to the level that he does is pretty impressive. He just keeps getting better, more alert, more focused. And offensively obviously had a good night as well.” 

Offensive Boards

OKC’s longest possession of the night took place in the fourth quarter. The team missed five straight 3-pointers, but secured an offensive rebound after each miss. Finally, after Ty Jerome’s shot from deep fell short, Lu Dort zipped into the lane and forced the ball down through the rim with a two-handed jam. 

“We were competing. We wanted that game and it was just good to be able to dominate the paint like that,” said Dort who finished with a game-high 26 points and three offensive rebounds. “I felt like we were just grinding the whole time and I just went up on the last one and dunked it."

That sequence alone accounted for five of the Thunder’s 18 offensive rebounds for the night as the squad also outrebounded the Warriors 50-40. Eight of the nine Thunder players to touch the floor on Monday recorded at least one offensive rebound and Thunder big man Derrick Favors led the way with four. 

THE LAST WORD

WHAT'S NEXT 

The Thunder will close out its brief homestand with a tilt against the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday before setting out on a three-game Eastern Conference road trip starting in Philadelphia on Friday.