Tre Mann Flashes Potential, Thunder Drop Eighth Straight in Miami
Oklahoma City dropped its eighth straight game Friday night, as the defensive struggles continued in a 120-108 loss to the Heat. The Thunder were led by the duo of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Tre Mann who each had huge nights offensively.
Mann netted 25 points including five triples. He also added eight rebounds. He displayed his ability to play as a microwave scorer with 20 points in a quarter.
Gilgeous-Alexander continued his offensive tear, this time pouring in 26 points. He shot an efficient 9-of-17 on the evening.
Aleksej Pokusevski stuffed the box score, adding 10 points, five assists and 14 rebounds. He also only committed one turnover.
Miami had four different players score over 15 points. Bam Adebayo and Duncan Robinson combined to shoot 15-of-20 on the night for a total of 38 points. As a team, the Heat shot 48.4% from the floor and nailed 18 3-pointers.
In the first quarter, OKC couldn’t contain Robinson. The sharp-shooter started the game on a 9-2 run by himself for Miami. OKC was able to get back in the game behind Gilgeous-Alexander’s eight first quarter points.
Tre Mann took over in the second frame. He set the record for most points in a quarter by a Thunder rookie with 20 points in the frame. That also marks a season high for rookies in the NBA.
Despite SGA and Mann’s offensive fireworks, Oklahoma City couldn’t slow down the Heat. Miami shot 56.5% in the first half, getting anything they wanted offensively. Adebayo led the charge with 15 first half points, leading Miami to a 69-54 lead heading into break.
The defense continued to struggle in the third quarter as OKC allowed 34 points. Miami received a massive chunk of points from long distance, hitting wide-open shot after wide-open shot. Oklahoma City was late on many rotations and the Heat capitalized.
In the fourth quarter, OKC had its best frame of the evening. With the second units in and competing, the Thunder held the Heat to just x points and outscored Miami 120-108. It wasn't enough, though, as Miami prevailed x-x.
OKC now enters a critical week for draft positioning. The Thunder play the Orlando Magic twice, the first matchup on the road Sunday. Orlando has a three game lead on OKC in the reverse standings for the NBA draft.
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