Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a season-high 43 points and hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 32.6 seconds remaining as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 117-112 on Monday night at Rocket Arena, according to The Associated Press. It was the first game of a two-game set between the teams, who meet again Wednesday in Oklahoma City.
The fourth quarter saw eight ties and eight lead changes before Gilgeous-Alexander drilled his fourth 3-pointer of the night. Cleveland’s Sam Merrill missed a corner shot on the next possession, and Ajay Mitchell made two free throws with 15.4 seconds left to make it a two-possession game, the AP reported. Mitchell finished with 20 points, and Isaiah Hartenstein pulled down 14 rebounds for the Thunder.
Rookie Meleek Thomas, making his first NBA start, and Donovan Mitchell led Cleveland with 17 points apiece. Mitchell also had 11 assists, and Evan Mobley added 16 points. The loss was the Cavaliers’ first at home in four games this season, dropping them to 4-3, while Oklahoma City improved to 5-2.
Cleveland played shorthanded. Wing Peyton Watson was ruled out about an hour before tipoff with right hamstring tightness, the first game he has missed this season, according to the Akron Beacon Journal. Wing Jaylon Tyson also sat out with a sprained right ankle, his second straight missed game, the Beacon Journal reported. Watson, acquired from Denver in a sign-and-trade this past summer, had started each of Cleveland’s first six games, averaging 10.8 points.
Oklahoma City’s win was notable given its own injury list: the Thunder have been playing without three starters lost to long-term injuries, yet snapped a two-game road losing streak behind Gilgeous-Alexander, who attempted 35 shots, the most in the NBA during the first two weeks of the season, according to the AP.
The Cavaliers get an immediate chance at payback: the two teams play again Wednesday night, November 4, in Oklahoma City. Cleveland’s first task will be finding a way to slow Gilgeous-Alexander, who matched his highest scoring total in 17 career games against the Cavaliers.
Photo: Erik Drost, CC BY