Thunder Come From Behind for Win Over Blazers

The game looked bleak following the first quarter.

The second didn’t help the outlook as the Thunder had just 39 points in the first half.

Despite that measly number posted in the first half, the Thunder overcame the struggles to take down the Trailblazers 98-81. Neither team had their star with Damian Lillard and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander both missing the contest.

The Thunder defense, after allowing 31 points in the first quarter, locked in the next three quarters allowing no more than 20 in a quarter. The Thunder forced 14 turnovers and scored 15 points off of those turnovers.

The Thunder trailed by as many as 18 in the game before clawing back in to grab a big win. The win marked the Thunder’s first home win in 2022. It is the Thunder’s seventh time this season coming from 15 or more points down to win, an NBA high.

Josh Giddey continued his dominant rookie season breaking the rookie record for double-doubles, formerly held by Russell Westbrook. Giddey finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

Lu Dort walked off of the court to chants of his name after posting a team-high 18 points on 6-of-16 shooting. Despite shooting 28% from 3-point range the Thunder still knocked down 12 timely deep balls in the game.

The Thunder on the other end limited the 3-point crazed Blazers to 7-of-38 from beyond the arc, a measly posting of 18.4%. Including 2-of-22 from beyond the arc in the second half.

Darius Bazley once again stepped up for OKC off of the bench with 15 points, five rebounds and three assists. Bazley also made 3-of-4 3-point shots on the night.

The Thunder made 16-of-17 free throws and out-rebounded the Blazers 50-41 in the comeback win.

Want to join the discussion? Like SI Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.

Add us as a preferred source on Google