This seasonThe Thunder have finished 16-8 and rank first in the leagueThe Grizzlies are in poor form this season, currently only ranking 13th in the West with 6 wins and 18 losses, and have suffered four consecutive defeats. But there's good news for the Grizzlies, as this is their 25th gameIn the next game, Morant will be released from the ban and come back.
Gilliard and Jaren Jackson Jr. hit back-to-back three-pointers in the opening game, and Bane also hit a three-pointer to give the Grizzlies a 9-4 lead. Dort hit a three-point shot, Bane immediately responded with a three-pointer, Holmgren hit a 2+1, Giddey scored a pick-and-roll, and the Thunder tied it at 12-12. Gilliard hit a three-pointer, Dort made a layup, Gilliard hit another three-pointer, Jalen Williams responded with a three-pointer, Alexander hit both free throws, and Dort hit a three-pointer to give the Thunder a 22-18 lead. Vince Williams scored on the second offense, Jaylin Williams made a jumper from the free throw line, Alexander hit both free throws, Jaren Jackson Jr. hit 2+1, and the Grizzlies chased down to only one point. Alexander scored six straight points, Holmgren hit a dunk in the air, and the Thunder led 34-26 to end the first quarter. Alexander contributed 10 points in the first quarter.
The Grizzlies opened the second quarter with an 8-0 tie. Isaiah Joe hit a three-pointer to help the Thunder break the scoring drought, Zaire hit a dunk, Giang hit a jumper from the free throw line, Holmgren scored a layup, and then turned around and dunked to give the Thunder a 43-36 lead. Zaire hit a throw-up, Holmgren hit a three-pointer, and Wiggins hit a layup to give the Thunder a 10-point lead. Zaire and Vince Williams each hit a three-pointer, Giddey hit a layup, Wallace scored on a basket and Alexander countered for a layup to give the Thunder a 54-44 lead. Alexander, Wallace, and Kenway fired from beyond the three-point line, and the Thunder led by 14 points. Aldama made one of two free throws, Kenway hit another three, Konchar returned a three-pointer and SGA hit both free throws to give the Thunder a 68-53 lead to end the second quarter. At halftime, Alexander scored 17 points, Holmgren had 12 points and five blocks, and Bane had 13 points.
Bane scored a three-pointer in the third quarter, Dort hit a three-pointer, Jalen Williams made one of two free throws, and Giddey hit a pick-and-roll to give the Thunder a 74-56 lead. After Jaren Jackson Jr., the Thunder went on a 13-0 run to extend the Thunder's lead to 29 points. Aldama hit a high three-pointer, Konchar hit both free throws, Bane made one of two free throws and Wallace trailed it 64-87. Wallace hit a layup, then Alexander hit 3 of four free throws and a breakaway dunk to give the Thunder a 94-66 lead to end the third quarter. Alexander scored 13 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals on 4-of-11 shooting, clocking out early.
Giddey hit a throw-up in the final quarter, Zaire hit a layup and then hit a three-pointer to put the Grizzlies up 71-96. Jalen Williams hit a step-back shot, and Giddey hit both free throws to bring the margin to 29 points. GG Jackson hit two three-pointers in a row, Isaiah Joe scored an empty dunk, Giddey countered and hit a layup, Jalen Williams hit both free throws, Giddey also hit both free throws, and the score came to 108-77 to lead by 31 points. The game also completely lost suspense, and in the end, the Thunder defeated the Grizzlies 116-97, sending the opponent to a fifth straight defeat.
Alexander finished with 30 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals on 8-of-18 shooting and 13-of-14 free throws, with a game-high plus/minus of +30Holmgren had 17 points, six rebounds and seven blocks on 7-of-14 shooting, Giddey had 16 points and 12 rebounds on 6-of-12 shooting, and Dort had 11 points and Jalen Williams contributed 10 points.
For the Grizzlies, Zaire Williams had 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists on 6-of-12 shooting, he played the full fourth quarter with 12 points, Bane had 17 points, five assists and five turnovers on 6-of-14 shooting and 4-of-9 three-pointers, Gilliard had 12 points and seven assists, and Jaren Jackson Jr. had 11 points and five rebounds.
After the victory, the Thunder cemented their position as the second largest in the West, and they now have a large pool of young talentAlexander currently leads the steals charts, and Chet has become the second rookie after Duncan to make at least seven blocks in two consecutive gamesBut the Thunder are still looking to bolster and they are interested in both Markkanen of the Jazz and Stewart of the Pistons, and it looks like they want to make some progress this season.