Thunder 118-108 Trail Blazers (January 26, 2025) Game Summary

PORTLAND, Ore. — — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 points and the NBA-leading Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Portland Trail Blazers 118-108 on Sunday night.

Jalen Williams added 24 points and eight assists and Isaiah Hartenstein had 14 points and 11 rebounds to help the Thunder bounce back from a home loss to Dallas on Thursday night. Oklahoma City is 37-8 overall and 17-5 on the road.

Deni Avdija had 28 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Portland.

Portland made things interesting in the final period, cutting it to 93-88 on Anfernee Simons’ free throws. The Thunder countered with a banked 3-pointer from Williams to make it 96-88. A 3-pointer from Alex Caruso made it 105-90.

Takeaways

Thunder: Oklahoma City leads the league in steals for the second straight season. According to coach Mark Daigenault, the biggest reason is the defensive prowess of their best players, not something he coaches. “At our level, it’s the quality of the defensive personnel,” he said.

Trail Blazers: Rookie center Donovan Clingan has been in and out of the lineup this season with injuries. He returned Friday night in a win over Charlotte and finished with 13 rebounds and four blocks. “I’m glad to have him back out there,” coach Chauncey Billups said.

Key moment

The Thunder outscored the Trail Blazers 39-27 in the second quarter.

Key statistics

Oklahoma City had a 52-22 advantage in points in the paint and a 28-13 advantage in second chances.

Next

The Thunder are in Golden State on Wednesday night. The Trail Blazers host Milwaukee on Tuesday night.

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