Thunder Rookie Jalen Williams Converts on Game-Winning Shot Over Pistons
It was the second night of a back-to-back for the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center on Wednesday, as they hosted the Detroit Pistons. Coming off of a bad loss against the Orlando Magic on Tuesday, the Thunder's play-in hopes hinged on the results of this contest, with just over a week left in the regular season.
Oklahoma City was without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for the second-straight contest, but still came out with a 107-106 victory.
The offense was slow for both teams early in the contest, as the first quarter came to a close tied at 26. From there, former Thunder forward Eugene Omoruyi scored seven second quarter points, which helped Detroit break open a multi-possession lead. Former No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman was also key in the first half, dominating the paint with 12 points and seven boards at the break.
The Thunder had four players score in double figures in the first half, as it was a two-point game entering the third quarter. Following a back-and-fourth start to the second half, Thunder center Jaylin Williams knocked down back-to-back threes and Lu Dort had a quick five-point burst which led to OKC taking a solid lead.
This continued into the final frame, as the Thunder led by seven early in the fourth. Being on the second night of a back-to-back, Oklahoma City struggled to pull away and let the Pistons back in it as they knocked down a pair of 3-pointers. Just when it looked like the Thunder were potentially going to blow a lead for the second-straight night, they pulled back out in front and maintained a two possession lead through the middle part of the fourth.
Although Oklahoma City was up by six with right around four minutes left, Detroit poured in two quick shots from beyond the arc to tie the game at 100 with just over three minutes remaining.
After back-and-forth action, including Jaylin Williams drawing his third charge of the game that led to rookie Jaden Ivey fouling out, Cory Joseph hit a gut-punching three to take the lead by one with 13.5 seconds left.
From there, Jalen Williams tipped in a Josh Giddey missed shot attempt with less than a second left to win the game.
This victory will have massive implications on the Thunder's positioning in the Western Conference with just five games remaining in the 2022-23 campaign.
Including the game-winner, Williams led all scorers with 27 points to go along with eight rebounds and six assists.
Lu Dort contributed 20, Aaron Wiggins pitched in 19, and Josh Giddey produced 18 points. Without Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City found ways to produce points from other complimentary pieces.
Ivey led the Pistons in scoring with 24 points, but Detroit also had six other players score in double figures. It was a balanced offensive attack for the young team, but wasn't enough to come out on top.
The Thunder will now head to Indiana to take on the Pacers Friday night.
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