Gilgeous-Alexander scores 28 points, Thunder use runs of 17-0 and 13-0 to beat Heat 128-120
MIAMI (AP) The season is nearing the halfway point, and the Oklahoma City Thunder are barely outside of the top spot in the Western Conference.
They're not impressed.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 28 points, Chet Holmgren added 23 and the Thunder used two big second-half runs to beat the Miami Heat 128-120 on Wednesday night.
At 25-11, Oklahoma City is off to its best 36-game start since 2015-16 - a season when Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and the Thunder wound up making the West finals.
“What's put us in this position is we've improved continuously,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “We prepare for the next game. We execute as best we can. We do our best. We compete together. We understand it's not perfect and then we learn from the good, the bad. And we just rinse and repeat that 82 times ... wherever that lands us.”
The Thunder rode the strength of two big runs - a 13-0 spurt to open the third quarter, then a 17-0 run that started late in the third and extended five minutes into the fourth. Miami missed its first five shots of the second half, then missed 10 straight during the second Oklahoma City burst.
Jalen Williams finished with 19 points, a career-best 12 assists and nine rebounds, while Lu Dort scored 14 points and Isaiah Joe added 11. Oklahoma City beat Miami for the second time in the last 10 meetings.
“I think it was around the third quarter, the start of the fourth, we had a really big run defensively,” Williams said. “I think that kind of turned the tide in the game.”
Bam Adebayo led Miami with 25 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored 21 points and Haywood Highsmith had a career-best 19.
Tyler Herro scored 17 points, Nikola Jovic added 15 and Kevin Love had 12 for the Heat. Miami used a late 10-0 run to get within six with 1:08 remaining, but wouldn't score again.
Miami used its 20th different starting lineup of the season, in only 37 games. Jimmy Butler (toe, foot) and Caleb Martin (ankle) remained out, and Kyle Lowry was out with the sprained left hand that he suffered Monday night against Houston.
Miami led 69-65 after a statistically odd first half, one where the Thunder shot 69.2% and didn’t lead. History said that shouldn’t have happened.
Since the NBA began logging play-by-play data digitally in 1996-97, there had been 130 instances of a team shooting 69.2% or better in a first half - and this was only the third time that a team shot that well in the opening 24 minutes but trailed at the break anyway.
The Thunder cooled off in the second half, but still finished the game shooting 59%.
“We should always be competing on defense,” Herro said. “When we’re missing shots we can’t let that affect our energy and effort on the other end.”
UP NEXT
Thunder: Host Portland on Thursday night.
Heat: Host Orlando on Friday night.
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| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:00 |  | Chet Holmgren vs. Bam Adebayo (Haywood Highsmith gains possession) | ||
| 11:34 | | Tyler Herro misses two point driving layup | ||
| 11:29 | | Bam Adebayo offensive rebound | ||
| 11:29 | | Bam Adebayo misses two point tip layup | ||
| 11:28 |  | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander defensive rebound | ||
| 11:26 | | Chet Holmgren misses three point running jump shot | ||
| 11:26 | | Bam Adebayo defensive rebound | ||
| 11:09 | | +3 | Haywood Highsmith makes three point jump shot (Tyler Herro assists) | 0-3 |
| 10:53 | | Chet Holmgren misses two point pullup bank jump shot | ||
| 10:50 | | Tyler Herro defensive rebound | ||
| 10:39 | | +3 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes three point jump shot (Bam Adebayo assists) | 0-6 |
| 10:21 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point stepback jump shot | 2-6 |
| 10:09 | | +2 | Tyler Herro makes two point driving floating jump shot | 2-8 |
| 10:01 | | Jalen Williams turnover (out of bounds step) | ||
| 9:46 | | +3 | Nikola Jovic makes three point jump shot (Haywood Highsmith assists) | 2-11 |
| 9:25 | | +2 | Josh Giddey makes two point stepback jump shot | 4-11 |
| 9:13 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander technical foul (Defensive three second) | ||
| 9:13 | | Tyler Herro misses technical free throw 1 of 1 | ||
| 9:13 | | Heat offensive rebound | ||
| 9:02 | | +2 | Tyler Herro makes two point jump shot | 4-13 |
| 8:53 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point stepback jump shot | 6-13 |
| 8:35 | | +2 | Haywood Highsmith makes two point driving finger roll layup (Bam Adebayo assists) | 6-15 |
| 8:21 | | Nikola Jovic blocks Luguentz Dort's two point driving layup | ||
| 8:21 | | Thunder offensive rebound | ||
| 8:14 | | Luguentz Dort misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 8:10 | | Haywood Highsmith defensive rebound | ||
| 8:03 | | Haywood Highsmith misses three point jump shot | ||
| 7:59 | | Luguentz Dort defensive rebound | ||
| 7:48 | | +2 | Chet Holmgren makes two point reverse dunk | 8-15 |
| 7:37 | | +2 | Tyler Herro makes two point driving floating jump shot | 8-17 |
| 7:37 | | Luguentz Dort shooting foul (Tyler Herro draws the foul) | ||
| 7:37 | | +1 | Tyler Herro makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 8-18 |
| 7:26 | | Chet Holmgren turnover (bad pass) (Nikola Jovic steals) | ||
| 7:09 | | Haywood Highsmith misses two point turnaround jump shot | ||
| 7:06 | | Jalen Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 6:56 | | +2 | Chet Holmgren makes two point driving hook shot (Jalen Williams assists) | 10-18 |
| 6:56 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. shooting foul (Chet Holmgren draws the foul) | ||
| 6:56 | | Heat 60 second timeout | ||
| 6:56 | | +1 | Chet Holmgren makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 11-18 |
| 6:46 | | Nikola Jovic turnover (lost ball) (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander steals) | ||
| 6:39 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point running finger roll layup | 13-18 |
| 6:18 | | +3 | Haywood Highsmith makes three point jump shot (Nikola Jovic assists) | 13-21 |
| 6:02 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander misses two point driving layup | ||
| 5:59 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 5:48 | | +2 | Bam Adebayo makes two point fadeaway jump shot | 13-23 |
| 5:34 | | Tyler Herro personal foul (Cason Wallace draws the foul) | ||
| 5:27 | | +2 | Isaiah Joe makes two point layup (Jaylin Williams assists) | 15-23 |
| 5:07 | | Nikola Jovic misses three point jump shot | ||
| 5:04 | | Isaiah Joe defensive rebound | ||
| 4:47 | | Isaiah Joe misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 4:44 | | Kevin Love defensive rebound | ||
| 4:34 | | +2 | Kevin Love makes two point driving floating jump shot | 15-25 |
| 4:20 | | +3 | Jaylin Williams makes three point jump shot (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander assists) | 18-25 |
| 3:58 | | Tyler Herro misses three point jump shot | ||
| 3:58 | | Kenrich Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 3:48 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point driving floating bank jump shot | 20-25 |
| 3:48 | | Nikola Jovic shooting foul (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander draws the foul) | ||
| 3:48 | | +1 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 21-25 |
| 3:26 | | Jaylin Williams shooting foul (Kevin Love draws the foul) | ||
| 3:26 | | +1 | Kevin Love makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 21-26 |
| 3:26 | | +1 | Kevin Love makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 21-27 |
| 3:02 | | +2 | Kenrich Williams makes two point layup (Jaylin Williams assists) | 23-27 |
| 2:47 | | +2 | Kevin Love makes two point reverse layup (Haywood Highsmith assists) | 23-29 |
| 2:47 | | Thunder 60 second timeout | ||
| 2:34 | | +2 | Cason Wallace makes two point cutting finger roll layup (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander assists) | 25-29 |
| 2:20 | | +2 | Kevin Love makes two point fadeaway bank jump shot (Josh Richardson assists) | 25-31 |
| 2:03 | | Jaylin Williams misses three point jump shot | ||
| 2:01 | | Tyler Herro defensive rebound | ||
| 1:51 | | Josh Richardson misses three point jump shot | ||
| 1:49 | | Jaylin Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 1:40 | | Kenrich Williams turnover (bad pass) (Josh Richardson steals) | ||
| 1:25 | | +2 | Tyler Herro makes two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot | 25-33 |
| 1:08 | | Kenrich Williams turnover (bad pass) (Haywood Highsmith steals) | ||
| 1:04 | | Josh Richardson turnover (traveling) | ||
| 0:47 | | +2 | Jalen Williams makes two point cutting layup (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander assists) | 27-33 |
| 0:26 | | +2 | Bam Adebayo makes two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot | 27-35 |
| 0:04 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point pullup jump shot | 29-35 |
| 0:01 | | Duncan Robinson misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 0:00 | | Heat offensive rebound | ||
| 0:00 | | End of period |
| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11:48 | | +2 | Jalen Williams makes two point driving finger roll layup (Chet Holmgren assists) | 31-35 |
| 11:27 | | +3 | Duncan Robinson makes three point pullup jump shot | 31-38 |
| 11:10 | | +2 | Jalen Williams makes two point stepback jump shot | 33-38 |
| 10:49 | | Duncan Robinson misses two point hook shot | ||
| 10:47 | | Kevin Love offensive rebound | ||
| 10:46 | | Chet Holmgren shooting foul (Jaime Jaquez Jr. draws the foul) | ||
| 10:46 | | +1 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 33-39 |
| 10:46 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | ||
| 10:42 | | Chet Holmgren defensive rebound | ||
| 10:24 | | +2 | Luguentz Dort makes two point driving finger roll layup (Vasilije Micic assists) | 35-39 |
| 10:09 | | Duncan Robinson misses three point jump shot | ||
| 10:07 | | Vasilije Micic defensive rebound | ||
| 9:55 | | +2 | Chet Holmgren makes two point alley-oop layup (Jalen Williams assists) | 37-39 |
| 9:43 | | +2 | Bam Adebayo makes two point cutting dunk (Kevin Love assists) | 37-41 |
| 9:20 | | +2 | Aaron Wiggins makes two point pullup jump shot (Jalen Williams assists) | 39-41 |
| 9:06 | | +3 | Josh Richardson makes three point jump shot (Jaime Jaquez Jr. assists) | 39-44 |
| 8:45 | | +2 | Chet Holmgren makes two point alley-oop layup (Jalen Williams assists) | 41-44 |
| 8:38 | | +2 | Bam Adebayo makes two point pullup jump shot | 41-46 |
| 8:21 | | Jalen Williams misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 8:19 | | Kevin Love defensive rebound | ||
| 8:06 | | Bam Adebayo misses two point driving reverse layup | ||
| 8:03 | | Jalen Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 8:03 | | Josh Richardson shooting foul (Luguentz Dort draws the foul) | ||
| 8:03 | | Luguentz Dort misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 8:03 | | Thunder offensive rebound | ||
| 8:03 | | +1 | Luguentz Dort makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 42-46 |
| 7:53 | | Luguentz Dort shooting foul (Jaime Jaquez Jr. draws the foul) | ||
| 7:53 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 7:53 | | Heat offensive rebound | ||
| 7:53 | | +1 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 42-47 |
| 7:41 | | +2 | Vasilije Micic makes two point driving floating bank jump shot | 44-47 |
| 7:19 | | +3 | Josh Richardson makes three point jump shot (Nikola Jovic assists) | 44-50 |
| 7:12 | | Aaron Wiggins misses two point driving floating bank jump shot | ||
| 7:09 | | Josh Richardson defensive rebound | ||
| 7:06 | | +3 | Nikola Jovic makes three point running jump shot (Josh Richardson assists) | 44-53 |
| 7:06 | | Thunder 60 second timeout | ||
| 6:43 | | +3 | Jalen Williams makes three point jump shot (Jaylin Williams assists) | 47-53 |
| 6:24 | | Duncan Robinson turnover (out of bounds bad pass) | ||
| 6:10 | | +3 | Luguentz Dort makes three point jump shot (Josh Giddey assists) | 50-53 |
| 5:59 | | Luguentz Dort personal foul (Bam Adebayo draws the foul) | ||
| 5:45 | | +2 | Haywood Highsmith makes two point cutting dunk (Bam Adebayo assists) | 50-55 |
| 5:28 | | +2 | Vasilije Micic makes two point driving floating bank jump shot (Jalen Williams assists) | 52-55 |
| 5:12 | | Haywood Highsmith misses two point reverse layup | ||
| 5:10 | | Haywood Highsmith offensive rebound | ||
| 5:07 | | Tyler Herro misses two point turnaround jump shot | ||
| 5:05 | | Bam Adebayo offensive rebound | ||
| 5:02 | | Duncan Robinson misses three point jump shot | ||
| 4:59 | | Josh Giddey defensive rebound | ||
| 4:48 | | Josh Giddey turnover (traveling) | ||
| 4:31 | | +2 | Tyler Herro makes two point pullup jump shot (Bam Adebayo assists) | 52-57 |
| 4:18 | | Luguentz Dort misses three point jump shot | ||
| 4:15 | | Nikola Jovic defensive rebound | ||
| 4:11 | | +2 | Nikola Jovic makes two point driving layup (Bam Adebayo assists) | 52-59 |
| 3:53 | | +3 | Isaiah Joe makes three point jump shot (Jalen Williams assists) | 55-59 |
| 3:36 | | Tyler Herro misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 3:36 | | Heat offensive rebound | ||
| 3:33 | | Cason Wallace personal foul (Kevin Love draws the foul) | ||
| 3:23 | | +2 | Nikola Jovic makes two point cutting layup (Tyler Herro assists) | 55-61 |
| 3:12 | | Chet Holmgren misses three point jump shot | ||
| 3:07 | | Isaiah Joe offensive rebound | ||
| 2:59 | | Nikola Jovic shooting foul (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander draws the foul) | ||
| 2:59 | | Heat 60 second timeout | ||
| 2:59 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 2:59 | | Thunder offensive rebound | ||
| 2:59 | | +1 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 56-61 |
| 2:43 | | Kevin Love misses three point jump shot | ||
| 2:41 | | Chet Holmgren defensive rebound | ||
| 2:29 | | +3 | Isaiah Joe makes three point jump shot (Chet Holmgren assists) | 59-61 |
| 2:13 | | Duncan Robinson misses three point jump shot | ||
| 2:11 | | Chet Holmgren defensive rebound | ||
| 1:51 | | Cason Wallace turnover (bad pass) (Duncan Robinson steals) | ||
| 1:37 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shooting foul (Nikola Jovic draws the foul) | ||
| 1:37 | | +1 | Nikola Jovic makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 59-62 |
| 1:37 | | +1 | Nikola Jovic makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 59-63 |
| 1:26 | | +3 | Cason Wallace makes three point jump shot (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander assists) | 62-63 |
| 1:16 | | Cason Wallace shooting foul (Tyler Herro draws the foul) | ||
| 1:16 | | +1 | Tyler Herro makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 62-64 |
| 1:16 | | Tyler Herro misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | ||
| 1:13 | | Chet Holmgren defensive rebound | ||
| 1:00 | | +3 | Isaiah Joe makes three point jump shot (Jalen Williams assists) | 65-64 |
| 0:49 | | Tyler Herro misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 0:47 | | Bam Adebayo offensive rebound | ||
| 0:42 | | +3 | Haywood Highsmith makes three point jump shot (Jaime Jaquez Jr. assists) | 65-67 |
| 0:32 | | Cason Wallace misses three point jump shot | ||
| 0:29 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 0:27 | | +2 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes two point running finger roll layup | 65-69 |
| 0:09 | | Haywood Highsmith personal foul (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander draws the foul) | ||
| 0:01 | | Isaiah Joe turnover (bad pass) (Tyler Herro steals) | ||
| 0:00 | | End of period |