A lackluster first half from the Thunder set the stage for an intense four-quarter battle. Sharp shooting from the field, consistency from the free-throw line and a monstrous performance on defense gave the Thunder the momentum-building victory in overtime in front of its home crowd.
Game Flow Philly made their first five shots of the game (5-5 FG , 2-2 3PT). Starting with a jumper from Joel Embiid from the top of the key, and two threes from him and Tobias Harris, Thunder Head Coach Billy Donovan was forced to call a timeout after the Philly lead grew to 12-3 with 8:37 remaining in the first quarter. Even after the rocky start, the Thunder fought their way back with physical play on defense. Going into the second quarter, the Thunder only trailed by five points. The 76ers attempted to exploit their size by posting their 6-foot-10 point guard, Ben Simmons on defenders like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to little avail thanks to a team defensive effort with constant communication and sharp help defense. With the Thunder not backing down at all, the team went into the locker room with a 54-49 advantage, its largest lead of the night. For the first few possessions following halftime, it looked as if the trend of the dreaded third quarter struggles might continue for the Thunder after the 76ers managed to tie the ball game at 54 after Philly went on a 5-0 run out of the tunnel. Terrance Ferguson quickly answered on the other end with a three of his own to lift his team back ahead followed by another three to tie his season high of three 3-pointers in a game. The tide began to shift at the end of the third quarter. Philadelphia, taking advantage of their size on the glass, grabbed a key offensive rebound to kick out to Al Horford for 3 to bring the 76ers to a two-point game. A series of fouls by the Thunder gave the 76ers an open door at the free throw line where they took advantage to take the lead 75-74 with 2:54 remaining in the quarter. From that point, the Thunder found itself in a fight to stay in the game as Philly outscored OKC 26-34 in the 3rd stanza. Going into the final frame, the Thunder trailed 80-83 with the momentum rolling in Philadelphia’s direction. Free throws and layups grew the 76ers lead to as many as nine. Then Chris Paul took control. Leading all scorers in the 4th quarter with 12 points, Paul found ways to put the ball in the bucket. Drawing fouls on reaching defenders and knocking down jumpers giving the Thunder the momentum back in Chesapeake Energy Arena and back within a one possession game.
A series of free throws from both teams knotted the game up at 107 with only 3.9 seconds remaining on the clock. The Thunder had possession coming out of the timeout after advancing to the frontcourt. Danilo Gallinari caught the ball on the inbounds, attacked downhill and got off a decent look at a deep two that didn’t fall. Overtime. Overtime saw minimum back and forth with the Thunder maintaining a steady lead throughout the five-minute stretch. Starting things off for the Thunder was Ferguson who knocked down his 4th three of the game in the opening play of over time. Philly was forced to play catch-up for the remaining time in the game. As Philly began to go cold from the field, a few key daggers from Danilo Gallinari, Chris Paul and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander were enough to write this one in stone. Gallinari, Paul and Gilgeous-Alexander all finished the game with over 20 points. Terrance Ferguson hit a new season high with 19 points shooting 5 of 7 from behind the arc. “It was my daughters first home game, so I was excited for that,” said Ferguson. “It was definitely one for the books.” “We did a great job, we’re showing a lot of fight,” said Paul. “I think the coaches did a great job challenging us the way we got bullied against the Pacers, so I think we showed what we’re capable of. Hopefully we can get to the point where we don’t have to get knocked down to get back up.”
Decisive Moments
The Thunder trailed 90-96 with five minutes left in the fourth quarter. A big-time 3-pointer from Ferguson brought the game to three points. Following that momentum boosting play, Gallinari hit a picturesque step back over the outstretched arms of Tobias Harris to bring the game to one point. On the next possession, Gilgeous-Alexander finished in the lane on a patient spin move to extend the Thunder lead. From that point, the Thunder would not trail again for the remainder of the game.
Play of the Game With the Thunder precariously ahead by three in overtime with 2:24 remaining. Chris Paul attacked in transition, getting a screen from Steven Adams and getting 7-footer, Joel Embiid to switch on him. Embiid was a step too far back and Paul picked up the ball ready to let it fly at the top of the key. Furkan Korkmaz fought his way through the screen from Adams and got a hand up just in time to deter the look for Paul. Pausing for only a breath, Paul made a simple two hand pass to the wing to a trailing Danilo Gallinari who stepped effortlessly into an open look and knocked it down. Chesapeake Energy Arena exploded in deafening praise as their team solidified their lead to two possessions with two minutes left in overtime.
“We were playing fast and [Chris Paul] had the ball and I screamed at him because I was coming from the back. He heard me and he was able to vision that a guy was able to give it to me and it was an open 3,” said Gallinari.
Stat of the Night85.4 The Thunder had one of its best three-throw shooting nights with 85.4% from the stripe. And the Thunder found its rhythm at the right time. The team shot 41 free throws compared to 22 from the 76ers and knocked down 35 of them. Both Danilo Gallinari (11-11) and Chris Paul (12-12) were perfect from the stripe.
“I was saying coming into the locker room to our staff, that we really did a good job of making free throws,” said Donovan. “Multiple guys, Gallinari, Shai, Chris, those guys all stepped up and made free throws.”
Quotes of the Night
“These are the moments that players live for, and these are the moments that we want at home, and it was great to get them a W.”- Danilo Gallinari
“I give our guys a lot of credit, I thought they really battled and fought. With the size of Philadelphia, we knew we were going to have some challenges on posts outside the basket, on rebounding, but our guys really stayed the course.” -Coach Donovan
Looking Ahead
The Thunder will take to the West Coast to face off against the Clippers and the Lakers in a Los Angeles back-to-back on Monday and Tuesday.