Gilgeous-Alexander Drops 44 as Thunder's Beat Trail Blazers

In their first game after the passing of the NBA’s trade deadline, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder marched into the Moda Center and handed Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers a loss behind a huge fourth quarter surge, 138-129.

The newest member of the Blazers, former 10th-overall pick, Cam Reddish, took advantage of a distracted Josh Giddey, cutting to the basket for an easy lay-in and scoring his first official points for the Blazers. Moments later, Reddish would bury a catch-and-shoot triple to give the Blazers a 7-0 advantage to kick off the first quarter.

And in what felt like a pay-per-view match, Gilgeous-Alexander and Lillard squared off in the first quarter, each leading their respective teams in scoring and showing off what makes them All-Star guards.

Lillard poured in 20 points on 5-of-6 shooting, nailing three 3-pointers, to help his Blazers edge out the Thunder in the first quarter, 35-33. Gilgeous-Alexander answered back, dropping 16 points on just four shots, and showing how hard it is to keep him from getting to the free throw line.

After a high-flying dunk and 3-pointer from Blazers’ rookie Shaedon Sharpe helped put Portland back on top, 44-43, Eugene Omoruyi committed a flagrant foul on a Jerami Grant 3-point attempt. Grant would hit all three of his free throws and the Blazers would earn an extra possession as a result. They would capitalize via a dunk by Grant to build a 52-46 lead to kick off the second frame.

Shortly after, Grant was fouled again while knocking down a 3-pointer. He made the free throw, giving the Blazers’ a 10-point lead at the six-minute mark.

But that didn’t keep the Thunder down long as Luguentz Dort quickly buried a deep triple, one that would eventually spark a 14-2 run, before Gilgeous-Alexander capitalized on his own and-one opportunity and Jaylin Williams found his way to the cup to cut Portland’s lead to just two, 56-54,

With the game knotted at 60 with 2.5 minutes remaining, Jalen Williams made his way underneath the Blazers’ basket for two before Dort earned another and-one opportunity for the Thunder to build a 67-62 lead.

A turnover would lead to another and-one opportunity for the Blazers as Dort fouled Grant, and Reddish would hit his second 3-pointer of the night before Dort found himself at the line knocking down a pair of free throws to give the Thunder a 72-68 lead before the break.

The third quarter saw the Blazers quickly overtake the Thunder, going on a 16-6 run behind three 3-pointers from Grant, Lillard, and Nassir Little, giving them an 84-78 lead. The duo of Giddey and Gilgeous-Alexander would quickly stop the bleeding after floaters, layups, and free throws put them right back in the game, down just one, 87-88, with little more than five minutes to go.

As the Blazers’ offense continued to put pressure on the Thunder’s defense, Gilgeous-Alexander’s downhill attack led to another Dort 3-pointer and a bucket and free throws for rookie center Jaylin Williams to give Oklahoma City a 96-93 lead.

But the Blazers would just keep coming. Grant would make another 3-pointer, then Sharpe, and then Sharpe again. The three quick 3-pointers would give the Blazers a 2-point lead late in the frame, 105-03, and they would maintain it heading into the fourth.

With Gilgeous-Alexander out to start the final quarter, the Blazers would quickly put together a 7-0 run, behind a tough turnaround jumper by Grant and a 3-pointer by Simons, to give them a 112-103 lead in the first two minutes, forcing Thunder head coach Daigneault to utilize a timeout.

After a 3-pointer by Josh Giddey, Kenrich Williams drew another charge to prevent a Blazers’ bucket and Gilgeous-Alexander quickly found his way back to the line to cut Portland’s lead to four. And on the next possession, Isaiah Joe would drill a corner 3-pointer to cut the lead to just one, 111-112.

Tumultuous possessions for the Blazers resulted in turnovers and Trendon Watford fouling out before Gilgeous-Alexander would take over the Thunder’s offense to power them to a 119-114 lead behind more free throws and a little playmaking with just five minutes left for Portland to steal the win.

With about three minutes to go and the Thunder up 126-121, the Blazers’ offense started to cool down and the Thunder’s offense continued to heat up after Dort buried another corner triple and Jalen Williams found a pair of dunks to push the Thunder’s lead to 133-121 with two minutes to go.

And with the game out of reach, Oklahoma City would enjoy their 27th win of the season after beating Portland, 138-129.

The Thunder will fly back to Oklahoma City to take on the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday at 7:00 p.m. CST.

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