Thunder rally past Celtics for franchise-record 15th straight win

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 33 points and 11 rebounds and the Oklahoma City Thunder pulled away from the Boston Celtics 105-92 on Sunday for their franchise-record 15th straight victory.

The Thunder, who improved to 30-5, haven’t lost a game that counts in the standings since Dec. 1. Their loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Cup Finals does not count toward the team’s record.

The previous team record was set by the then-Seattle SuperSonics in 1996.

Jayson Tatum had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the defending NBA champion Celtics. Jaylen Brown scored 21 points but went scoreless on 0-for-7 shooting in the second half.

Gilgeous-Alexander scored nine points in the first 3 1/2 minutes of play to help the Thunder take an early lead, but Boston rallied to lead 65-55 at halftime.

The Thunder trimmed the deficit to 80-76 at the end of the third quarter and regained the lead, 81-80, after a pair of free throws by Jalen Williams early in the fourth.

The Thunder remained in control and back-to-back 3s by Lu Dort put the Thunder up 100-88 with just under two minutes to play. Dort scored 11 points and made all three of his shots from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter.

Oklahoma City held Boston to a season-low 27 points in the second half. The Celtics’ previous low was 44.