Darius Bazley ties season-high 22 points in Thunder's blowout loss to Warriors
Bringing their losing streak to eight games, the Oklahoma City Thunder were blown out by the Golden State Warriors.
While Darius Bazley had one of his best games of the season, tying his season-high in points with 22, there weren't many other bright spots for the team.
Since returning from injury, Bazley has been spectacular and has caught the attention of his teammates. "He can do everything. He can dribble, he can shoot, he can pass," said Svi Mykhailiuk. "He has a great defensive presence."
Steph Curry scorched the Thunder for 42 points including eleven 3-pointers. With this 42-point performance, Curry has scored 40 points in back-to-back games for the first time since 2016. He finished the third quarter with 25 points, notching his 30th career 20-point quarter.
Draymond Green was another major contributor with a 12 point, 16 assist and 10 rebound triple-double.
"A lot of teams get complacent up 20. I thought they did a good job keeping their foot on the gas," said Thunder Head Coach Mark Daigneault. "They kinda smelled blood."
While it didn't do much as it relates to the perimeter game, Thunder centers Moses Brown and Tony Bradley combined for 35 points and 19 rebounds on the night. To help offensively, Svi Mykhailiuk produced 14 points while Ty Jerome and Theo Maledon also scored in double-figures with 11 and 10 points respectively.
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While scoring 109 points will win games in the NBA occasionally assuming you play solid defense, that didn't happen in Oklahoma City tonight.
For the 20th game in a row, the Thunder let up 100+ points, this time allowing Golden State to score 147 on 24 made threes (tying a franchise record). Any time a team converts on .511 of their 47 attempts from beyond the arc, it's bad news for the opposing defense.
While the Thunder out-rebounded the Warriors, Golden State dominated the game overall with 39 assists, 12 steals and six blocks. It was yet another game in which Oklahoma City went down 20 points in the first half and were never able to chip away at the lead.
Luckily for the Thunder, their next five games are against teams with a losing records. With lottery odds on the line, the next nine days will have major implications on their lottery situation as it relates to the 2021 NBA Draft. As of now, Oklahoma City holds sole possession of the fifth best odds.
The Thunder (20-34) will now head to Detroit to take on the Pistons (16-39) on Friday evening.
