The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Washington Wizards 114-75 on Saturday at Paycom Center, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scoring 30 points and dishing out nine assists to push Oklahoma City to 8-2. The Wizards fell to 4-6 and never led after the first quarter.
Oklahoma City outscored Washington 32-17 in the second quarter to stretch the lead to 57-36 at the half, then pushed the margin to as many as 43 points. AJ Dybantsa led the Wizards with 19 points, but Washington shot just 30% from the field and 16% from three-point range in the loss.
Takeaways From Thunder’s Win Over Wizards
A back-and-forth start gave way to a rout
The game was tied or within two points eight different times in the first quarter, with the score knotted at 19-19 on a Bub Carrington step-back three with 1:22 left in the period. From there, Oklahoma City closed the quarter on a 6-0 run and never looked back, outscoring Washington 95-56 over the final three quarters.
Oklahoma City’s bench swung the game
Aday Mara came off the bench to shoot 8 of 10 from the field for 18 points, adding eight rebounds and three assists in 27 minutes. Isaiah Hartenstein controlled the glass with 14 rebounds and six assists despite scoring just two points, and the Thunder outrebounded Washington 55-47 while out-assisting the Wizards 33-20.
Washington’s shooting collapsed under pressure
The Wizards finished 29 of 98 from the field, including a 7-of-43 mark from three-point range. Washington also committed 12 total turnovers that led to 17 Oklahoma City points, while the Thunder turned 13 turnovers into just 10 points the other way.
Player Of The Game: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Gilgeous-Alexander went 11 of 20 from the field, including 3 of 5 from three-point range, finishing with 30 points and nine assists in 29 minutes. He posted a plus-21 rating, the second-best mark on either roster behind Hartenstein’s plus-25.
Thunder Vs Wizards By The Numbers
Oklahoma City shot 49% from the field compared to Washington’s 30%, a 19-point gap that defined the night. The Thunder also hit 36% of their threes to the Wizards’ 16%, and outscored Washington 56-32 in the paint. Oklahoma City generated 21 fast-break points to Washington’s 11, and the Thunder’s largest lead of 43 points dwarfed Washington’s largest lead of just one point. Oklahoma City also won the free-throw battle, making 14 of 18 attempts to Washington’s 10 of 15.
What It Means
The win keeps Oklahoma City atop the Northwest Division standings at 8-2, two games ahead of idle ground given Portland’s 6-2 mark. Washington sits at 4-6 and now trails Southeast-leading Atlanta by 2.5 games after dropping to a three-game losing streak.
What’s Next
Oklahoma City leads the season series 1-0 after Saturday’s result. Washington will look to snap its skid in its next outing, while the Thunder aim to extend a four-game winning streak as the Northwest Division race continues.
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