It was a copycat game, and the Oklahoma City Thunder were flexing their muscles and are on cruise control.
The Western Conference’s top seed yet again handled their business on their home court without much suspense or drama on Tuesday night, blowing out the Memphis Grizzlies 118-99 in Game 2 of their Western Conference Playoffs series.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 27 points, seven rebounds and five assists, his costar, Jalen Williams contributed 24 points, six boards, five helpers, and Chet Holmgren had a double-double with 20 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocks, pacing the Thunder, while Jaren Jackson Jr. led the Grizzlies with 26 points. Ja Morant added 23 points and six assists.
The Thunder led comfortably, 32-17 at the end of the first quarter and never looked back.
“We never underestimate our opponent, no matter what,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Obviously they’re a very good team. They wouldn’t be here if they weren’t. And we just wanted to make an emphasis to come out and win that first quarter, set the tone for the night.”
Oklahoma City’s offense was still high-flying, despite Gilgeous-Alexander having a bad shooting night, making just 10 of 29 shots.
“Everybody that touched the court played with confidence, played the right way, and we’re going to need that,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “You know, in all these games, it’s going to be different guys on different nights.”
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Thunder now hold a 2-0 lead in the series, and it feels insurmountable. Game 1 on Sunday was a 131-80 blowout, and while Game 2 was not quite so lopsided, it was nonetheless convincing.
The Thunder, being up 2-0 in the series, is not a huge shock to anyone. The No. 1 vs. No. 8 matchup is rarely won by the underdog and the Thunder are fresh off a 68-win regular season, one of the best campaigns in recent memory.
The full scope of dominance has been a bit surprising, however, and has been as much about Memphis’ lack of competitiveness as it has been about OKC’s excellence.
Memphis started hot in the third and cut its deficit to single digits, but the Thunder took an 11-point 90-79 lead into the final frame.
“The difference was that we started seriously competing in the third quarter and basically played them to a tie after that,” Memphis interim coach Tuomas Iisalo said. “But it’s against a team of this caliber, we need that for the whole 48 minutes right from the get-go. And we’ve got to have an attack mindset right from the start and not take any steps back.”
The Thunder held Memphis scoreless for nearly four minutes to start the fourth. It was the second consecutive game that Memphis failed to score at least 100 points. It is nearly impossible to win that way in today’s NBA.
Perhaps the series having a change of scenery heading to Memphis for the next two games, starting on Thursday, will even up the playing field just a touch. But after the first two games, this one feels like a sweep on the horizon. Bring out the broom.
