Gilgeous-Alexander Leads Short-handed Thunder In Loss to Grizzlies
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In their third road game in five days, the Oklahoma City Thunder faced the Memphis Grizzlies and their superstar, Ja Morant. The third-seed Grizzlies controlled the game all night long and their offense eventually broke free, out-scoring the Thunder 29-15 in the fourth quarter to earn a 123-102 win.
The Thunder, without Luguentz Dort for the match, had trouble guarding the electric ball-handler, Morant, as they allowed him to earn just his sixth triple-double of his career behind 26 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists. Morant had no trouble slipping around or behind Oklahoma City’s defense and his three-ball was money, too.
What didn’t help matters was the Thunder’s offense. Oklahoma City did shoot 36.8% on 38 3-point attempts and 87% on 23 free throws, but they hit a dreadful 37% from the floor. To make matters worse, only three Thunder players earned a trip to the free-throw line and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was responsible for 19 of those 23 trips.
Here are your top performers from Wednesday night’s loss.
Eugene Omoruyi
Currently, on a two-way contract, Omoruyi only sees the floor every so often for the Thunder, and tonight he got another chance. And once again, the energetic big man delivered, providing a necessary spark off the bench as a small-ball center.
In a game where the Thunder had trouble getting stops and crashing the glass, Omoruyi was able to utilize his nimbleness and athleticism at 6-foot-7 to foil several plays and help out on the boards. On one play, he even found himself defending Morant in isolation and forced the officials to issue an offensive foul call.
Omoruyi was able to knock down five of his 11 shots, resulting in 11 points to go along with his five rebounds, four steals, and two assists.
Josh Giddey
In a game that didn’t see many great performances coming from Oklahoma City, the Thunder’s secondary ball-handler, Giddey, still had a decent night. The passing guru was able to knock down a few shots, grab several boards, and did a solid job setting up his teammates for success, even though shots weren’t falling for his teammates tonight.
Although Giddey didn’t shoot the ball well from the floor, going just 4-for-13, he capitalized on his three 3-point attempts, making two of them to bring his three-game shooting average to 46.7%. And the 6-foot-8 point guard was able to contribute on the defensive end early in the game, intercepting a pass to earn one steal to put alongside his double-double.
Giddey ended the night with 10 points, 10 boards, and four assists.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Although his seven-game streak of 30-point outings came to an end on Wednesday night, Gilgeous-Alexander still put up quite the performance, matching Ja Morant’s 26 points on the back of 19 trips to the free throw line which effectively kept the Thunder in the game through the first three-quarters of play.
After going just 4-for-14 from the field, the slippery guard was able to extract the most out of the Grizzlies’ defense, drawing contact over and over again. The elusive guard troubled Memphis’ best defenders, resulting in seven assists for the Thunder’s star guard.
Gilgeous-Alexander was also able to knock down a beautiful step-back 3-pointer on the left wing for his only make, from downtown, on the night. He also was able to come away with one block.
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