OKC Thunder Perfect On Second Night of Back-to-Back

The Oklahoma City Thunder are 7-0 on the second night of a back to back and they have their next chance to extend this streak on Friday against the Dallas Mavericks.

Jan 14, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) reacts after being fouled against the Philadelphia 76ers during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder are off to a historic start sitting at 33-6 on the front end of their Cleveland Cavaliers-Dallas Mavericks back-to-back set. A large reason for the Thunder's success has been its ability to navigate these back-to-back matchups.

On the second night of a back-to-back the Thunder are a perfect 7-0 with a chance to extend that streak against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday, who will be without Luka Doncic and likely big man Dereck Lively II at a minumum. This, on the heels of a rematch with the Cavs who have been one of the best teams in basketball all season.

The Thunder have gone a perfect 2-0 four times, while splitting the pair twice times. One of the splits was the loss to Golden State when Chet Holmgren left the game minutes in due to a hip fracture and the other on the heels of dropping its worst game of the season against a Victor Wembanyama-less Spurs squad.

Oklahoma City will look to remain perfect on the back end of a back-to-back in Dallas, with a manageable travel load on a short trip down the highway for that tilt after battling the Cavs at home.

This is a skill that can be attributed to Mark Daigneault's 0-0 mentality he has instilled on this roster to help lift them during the grind of a season.

The Thunder will be fighting an uphill battle on this back to back set with the recent Isaiah Hartenstein injury taking him out for both of these contests with his re-evaluation set for a week from Wednesday.

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