Gilgeous-Alexander has big 2nd half to help Thunder rally past Heat, 107-100
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 23 of his 37 points in the second half and the Oklahoma City Thunder overcame a 14-point deficit to beat the Miami Heat 107-100 and take the Western Conference lead Friday night.
Gilgeous-Alexander made 13 of 25 field goals and 9 of 11 free throws. The NBA's No. 2 scorer was greeted with “M-V-P! M-V-P!” chants when he went to the line in the fourth quarter as he helped Oklahoma City take control.
The Thunder moved a half-game ahead of Minnesota for the West lead, with the Timberwolves falling in overtime at Cleveland.
Some of Gilgeous-Alexander's shots were taken from awkward angles. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said the All-Star has gotten better at figuring out when to take those kinds of shots.
“The shot making is great," Daigneault said. "He’s had the talent from day one. But what I’m most impressed with is the restraint he’s showing and the his ability to see the big picture, to leverage that talent for the good of the team while he’s still trying to accomplish individual things.”
Jalen Williams scored 15 points and Josh Giddey added 11 points, nine rebounds and six assists for the Thunder. Gilgeous-Alexander said his teammates deserve credit, too.
“We have guys like that across the board that do the little things that add up at the end of the night ... Everybody has a role and on this team everyone takes pride and does their role to the best of their ability," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "And that’s what I love about them.”
Miami rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored 25 points. Jimmy Butler added 20 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Bam Adebayo finished with just five points, though he grabbed 10 rebounds.
Miami lost both games of its back-to-back. The Heat lost 114-108 at Dallas on Thursday night.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said the team remains on track, despite the losses.
“We’ll get better from this,” Spoelstra said. “There were a lot of good things to take away. None of us want to talk about it or feel that or whatever right now because we’re competitors. But by the time we get back to Miami, even the head coach can see that there are some good things happening in our locker room.”
Miami led Oklahoma City 57-47 at halftime behind 50% shooting. Jaquez scored 17 points on 6-for-7 shooting before the break.
The Heat extended the lead to 65-51 the third quarter, but Oklahoma City erased its deficit four minutes later. Gilgeous-Alexander tied it at 65 on a free throw after a basket midway through the period. The Thunder took a 68-65 lead on a 3-pointer by Williams that Gilgeous-Alexander assisted to close out a 17-0 run.
The Thunder led 77-73 at the end of the third after holding Miami to 5-for-17 shooting in the period. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 11 points in the quarter to help Oklahoma City outscore Miami 30-16.
Gilgeous-Alexander took his usual rest to start the fourth, and Oklahoma City led 87-85 when he subbed back in with 7:16 remaining. He scored 12 points the rest of the way to keep the Thunder in control.
Daigneault said the win meant a little more than usual because of the opponent.
“They’re the competitive standard of the NBA, and so we have great respect for them and we know how much you have to earn a win against them,” Daigneault said. “So we’re really happy with that win.”
UP NEXT
Heat: Host Washington on Sunday night.
Thunder: Host Memphis on Sunday night.
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| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:00 |  | Bam Adebayo vs. Chet Holmgren (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gains possession) | ||
| 11:48 | | Jalen Williams misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 11:44 |  | Nikola Jovic defensive rebound | ||
| 11:29 | | Duncan Robinson misses three point jump shot | ||
| 11:26 | | Luguentz Dort defensive rebound | ||
| 11:12 | | Chet Holmgren misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 11:08 | | Duncan Robinson defensive rebound | ||
| 10:56 | | Jimmy Butler misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 10:53 | | Josh Giddey defensive rebound | ||
| 10:43 | | Chet Holmgren misses three point jump shot | ||
| 10:40 | | Nikola Jovic defensive rebound | ||
| 10:20 | | Nikola Jovic misses two point driving hook shot | ||
| 10:18 | | Chet Holmgren defensive rebound | ||
| 10:11 | | Luguentz Dort misses three point jump shot | ||
| 10:06 | | Jimmy Butler defensive rebound | ||
| 10:03 | | +2 | Jimmy Butler makes two point driving floating jump shot | 2-0 |
| 9:46 | | +2 | Jalen Williams makes two point cutting layup (Josh Giddey assists) | 2-2 |
| 9:28 | | +2 | Jimmy Butler makes two point cutting layup (Bam Adebayo assists) | 4-2 |
| 9:17 | | +2 | Josh Giddey makes two point cutting finger roll layup (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander assists) | 4-4 |
| 9:05 | | Jimmy Butler misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 9:03 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander defensive rebound | ||
| 8:53 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander misses two point fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 8:49 | | Terry Rozier defensive rebound | ||
| 8:47 | | +2 | Jimmy Butler makes two point running dunk (Terry Rozier assists) | 6-4 |
| 8:39 | | Josh Giddey misses two point cutting layup | ||
| 8:39 | | Josh Giddey offensive rebound | ||
| 8:25 | | Duncan Robinson personal foul (Luguentz Dort draws the foul) | ||
| 8:23 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point cutting dunk (Josh Giddey assists) | 6-6 |
| 8:11 | | +2 | Terry Rozier makes two point driving finger roll layup | 8-6 |
| 8:03 | | Luguentz Dort misses three point jump shot | ||
| 7:58 | | Nikola Jovic defensive rebound | ||
| 7:47 | | Bam Adebayo misses two point jump shot | ||
| 7:45 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander defensive rebound | ||
| 7:41 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point fadeaway jump shot | 8-8 |
| 7:25 | | +2 | Terry Rozier makes two point hook shot | 10-8 |
| 7:11 | | Chet Holmgren misses two point driving layup | ||
| 7:09 | | Nikola Jovic defensive rebound | ||
| 7:06 | | Duncan Robinson misses three point running pullup jump shot | ||
| 7:02 | | Josh Giddey defensive rebound | ||
| 6:57 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point running finger roll layup (Josh Giddey assists) | 10-10 |
| 6:29 | | Jimmy Butler misses three point jump shot | ||
| 6:29 | | Thunder defensive rebound | ||
| 6:29 | | Thunder 60 second timeout | ||
| 6:17 | | +2 | Chet Holmgren makes two point alley-oop dunk (Jalen Williams assists) | 10-12 |
| 6:02 | | +2 | Bam Adebayo makes two point jump shot (Terry Rozier assists) | 12-12 |
| 5:44 | | Jalen Williams turnover (traveling) | ||
| 5:31 | | Chet Holmgren shooting foul (Jaime Jaquez Jr. draws the foul) | ||
| 5:31 | | +1 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 13-12 |
| 5:31 | | +1 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 14-12 |
| 5:19 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. personal foul (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander draws the foul) | ||
| 5:11 | | +3 | Luguentz Dort makes three point jump shot (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander assists) | 14-15 |
| 4:56 | | +2 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes two point driving bank hook shot | 16-15 |
| 4:47 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. shooting foul (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander draws the foul) | ||
| 4:47 | | +1 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 16-16 |
| 4:47 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | ||
| 4:45 | | Bam Adebayo defensive rebound | ||
| 4:36 | | Luguentz Dort blocks Bam Adebayo's two point turnaround jump shot | ||
| 4:33 | | Jaylin Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 4:26 | | Caleb Martin blocks Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's two point driving layup | ||
| 4:26 | | Thunder offensive rebound | ||
| 4:20 | | +3 | Gordon Hayward makes three point jump shot (Isaiah Joe assists) | 16-19 |
| 4:17 | | Heat 60 second timeout | ||
| 4:07 | | Gordon Hayward shooting foul (Jaime Jaquez Jr. draws the foul) | ||
| 4:07 | | +1 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 17-19 |
| 4:07 | | +1 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 18-19 |
| 4:00 | | Cason Wallace turnover (out of bounds lost ball) | ||
| 3:45 | | Caleb Martin misses three point jump shot | ||
| 3:42 | | Jaylin Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 3:27 | | Cason Wallace turnover (lost ball) (Terry Rozier steals) | ||
| 3:23 | | Cason Wallace blocks Terry Rozier's two point running layup | ||
| 3:22 | | Terry Rozier offensive rebound | ||
| 3:21 | | Jaylin Williams blocks Terry Rozier's two point putback layup | ||
| 3:20 | | Gordon Hayward defensive rebound | ||
| 3:15 | | +2 | Isaiah Joe makes two point running layup (Gordon Hayward assists) | 18-21 |
| 3:02 | | +3 | Duncan Robinson makes three point jump shot (Bam Adebayo assists) | 21-21 |
| 2:42 | | Isaiah Joe turnover (bad pass) (Duncan Robinson steals) | ||
| 2:38 | | +2 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes two point running layup | 23-21 |
| 2:38 | | Gordon Hayward defensive goaltending violation | ||
| 2:21 | | Bam Adebayo blocks Cason Wallace's two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 2:16 | | Isaiah Joe offensive rebound | ||
| 2:14 | | +3 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes three point jump shot (Gordon Hayward assists) | 23-24 |
| 1:58 | | Caleb Martin turnover (out of bounds bad pass) | ||
| 1:44 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander turnover (bad pass) (Jaime Jaquez Jr. steals) | ||
| 1:41 | | Jaylin Williams shooting foul (Jaime Jaquez Jr. draws the foul) | ||
| 1:41 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 1:41 | | Heat offensive rebound | ||
| 1:41 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | ||
| 1:39 | | Jaylin Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 1:27 | | Nikola Jovic kicked ball violation | ||
| 1:17 | | Isaiah Joe misses three point jump shot | ||
| 1:14 | | Nikola Jovic defensive rebound | ||
| 0:59 | | +3 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes three point jump shot (Nikola Jovic assists) | 26-24 |
| 0:44 | | Cason Wallace misses three point jump shot | ||
| 0:42 | | Jaylin Williams offensive rebound | ||
| 0:31 | | +3 | Cason Wallace makes three point jump shot (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander assists) | 26-27 |
| 0:11 | | +3 | Caleb Martin makes three point jump shot (Jimmy Butler assists) | 29-27 |
| 0:01 | | Nikola Jovic blocks Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's two point driving layup | ||
| 0:01 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 0:00 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 0:00 | | Thunder defensive rebound | ||
| 0:00 | | End of period |
| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11:45 | | +2 | Jimmy Butler makes two point layup (Nikola Jovic assists) | 31-27 |
| 11:45 | | Cason Wallace shooting foul (Jimmy Butler draws the foul) | ||
| 11:45 | | +1 | Jimmy Butler makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 32-27 |
| 11:27 | | +2 | Josh Giddey makes two point layup (Cason Wallace assists) | 32-29 |
| 11:04 | | +3 | Patty Mills makes three point jump shot (Jimmy Butler assists) | 35-29 |
| 10:53 | | Nikola Jovic blocks Jalen Williams's two point driving layup | ||
| 10:50 | | Patty Mills defensive rebound | ||
| 10:48 | | Patty Mills turnover (lost ball) (Jalen Williams steals) | ||
| 10:34 | | +2 | Jalen Williams makes two point layup (Josh Giddey assists) | 35-31 |
| 10:21 | | Caleb Martin misses two point driving finger roll layup | ||
| 10:18 | | Josh Giddey defensive rebound | ||
| 10:12 | | Chet Holmgren misses three point jump shot | ||
| 10:11 | | Jaime Jaquez Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 9:59 | | +3 | Patty Mills makes three point jump shot (Jaime Jaquez Jr. assists) | 38-31 |
| 9:45 | | Jalen Williams misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 9:40 | | Patty Mills defensive rebound | ||
| 9:29 | | +2 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes two point driving hook shot | 40-31 |
| 9:28 | | Thunder 60 second timeout | ||
| 9:13 | | +2 | Jalen Williams makes two point driving layup (Chet Holmgren assists) | 40-33 |
| 8:53 | | +2 | Patty Mills makes two point pullup jump shot | 42-33 |
| 8:30 | | Luguentz Dort misses three point jump shot | ||
| 8:28 | | Nikola Jovic defensive rebound | ||
| 8:23 | | Caleb Martin misses three point running jump shot | ||
| 8:19 | | Luguentz Dort defensive rebound | ||
| 8:15 | | Patty Mills personal foul (Josh Giddey draws the foul) | ||
| 8:07 | | Jalen Williams misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 8:03 | | Caleb Martin defensive rebound | ||
| 7:50 | | Aaron Wiggins blocks Patty Mills's two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 7:49 | | Thunder defensive rebound | ||
| 7:33 | | Aaron Wiggins misses three point jump shot | ||
| 7:30 | | Jimmy Butler defensive rebound | ||
| 7:16 | | +3 | Patty Mills makes three point jump shot (Jaime Jaquez Jr. assists) | 45-33 |
| 7:03 | | Josh Giddey turnover (lost ball) (Jaime Jaquez Jr. steals) | ||
| 6:58 | | +2 | Caleb Martin makes two point running layup (Jimmy Butler assists) | 47-33 |
| 6:57 | | Thunder 60 second timeout | ||
| 6:37 | | +2 | Luguentz Dort makes two point driving layup (Gordon Hayward assists) | 47-35 |
| 6:20 | | Nikola Jovic misses three point jump shot | ||
| 6:15 | | Jalen Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 6:13 | | Caleb Martin personal foul (Jalen Williams draws the foul) | ||
| 6:00 | | Luguentz Dort turnover (bad pass) (Bam Adebayo steals) | ||
| 5:45 | | Bam Adebayo turnover (lost ball) (Gordon Hayward steals) | ||
| 5:32 | | +3 | Jaylin Williams makes three point jump shot (Jalen Williams assists) | 47-38 |
| 5:17 | | +2 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes two point driving layup (Bam Adebayo assists) | 49-38 |
| 5:02 | | Jaylin Williams misses two point turnaround jump shot | ||
| 5:00 | | Bam Adebayo defensive rebound | ||
| 4:48 | | Caleb Martin misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 4:44 | | Jalen Williams defensive rebound | ||
| 4:39 | | Aaron Wiggins misses three point running jump shot | ||
| 4:37 | | Terry Rozier defensive rebound | ||
| 4:29 | | Terry Rozier turnover (bad pass) (Jaylin Williams steals) | ||
| 4:25 | | Terry Rozier shooting foul (Jalen Williams draws the foul) | ||
| 4:25 | | +1 | Jalen Williams makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 49-39 |
| 4:25 | | +1 | Jalen Williams makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 49-40 |
| 4:17 | | Jalen Williams personal foul (Duncan Robinson draws the foul) | ||
| 4:01 | | Caleb Martin misses two point stepback jump shot | ||
| 3:58 | | Bam Adebayo offensive rebound | ||
| 3:53 | | Jaylin Williams shooting foul (Bam Adebayo draws the foul) | ||
| 3:53 | | Bam Adebayo misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 3:53 | | Heat offensive rebound | ||
| 3:53 | | +1 | Bam Adebayo makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 50-40 |
| 3:42 | | +3 | Isaiah Joe makes three point jump shot (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander assists) | 50-43 |
| 3:19 | | Terry Rozier misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 3:17 | | Aaron Wiggins defensive rebound | ||
| 3:07 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander misses two point driving reverse layup | ||
| 3:05 | | Bam Adebayo defensive rebound | ||
| 2:49 | | +2 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. makes two point cutting dunk (Bam Adebayo assists) | 52-43 |
| 2:29 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander misses three point jump shot | ||
| 2:26 | | Bam Adebayo defensive rebound | ||
| 2:18 | | Duncan Robinson misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 2:15 | | Bam Adebayo offensive rebound | ||
| 2:13 | | Bam Adebayo misses two point putback layup | ||
| 2:10 | | Isaiah Joe defensive rebound | ||
| 1:57 | | +2 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes two point turnaround fadeaway bank jump shot | 52-45 |
| 1:50 | | Heat 60 second timeout | ||
| 1:30 | | Jimmy Butler offensive foul (Charge) (Luguentz Dort draws the foul) | ||
| 1:30 | | Jimmy Butler turnover (offensive foul) | ||
| 1:18 | | Gordon Hayward misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 1:14 | | Jimmy Butler defensive rebound | ||
| 0:58 | | Duncan Robinson misses three point jump shot | ||
| 0:57 | | Gordon Hayward defensive rebound | ||
| 0:51 | | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander misses three point running pullup jump shot | ||
| 0:48 | | Duncan Robinson defensive rebound | ||
| 0:41 | | +2 | Jimmy Butler makes two point layup (Terry Rozier assists) | 54-45 |
| 0:31 | | Haywood Highsmith shooting foul (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander draws the foul) | ||
| 0:31 | | +1 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 54-46 |
| 0:31 | | +1 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes regular free throw 2 of 2 |