OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 39 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder used a big third quarter to beat the skidding Atlanta Hawks 140-129 on Monday night.
Chet Holmgren had 24 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, and Jalen Williams added 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the NBA-leading Thunder (28-5).
Gilgeous-Alexander scored the Thunder's first eight points. He made 15 of 24 field goals and all seven of his foul shots. He scored at least 20 points for the 104th consecutive game.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 30 points and Onyeka Okongwu had 26 points and 14 rebounds for Atlanta (15-19), which has lost seven straight. The short-handed Hawks played without starters Trae Young (quad), Jalen Johnson (illness) and Kristaps Porzingis (illness).
The teams combined to shoot 86 3-pointers. The Hawks were 25 of 54 (46.3%), while the Thunder made 12 of 32 (37.5%). Oklahoma City scored 70 points in the paint compared to 36 for Atlanta.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 15 of the Thunder's 35 first-quarter points. His three-point play with 3.4 seconds remaining pulled Oklahoma City even. But first cousin Alexander-Walker swished a 45-footer as time expired to put the Hawks in front 38-35.
Atlanta extended the advantage to 54-44 on a 3-pointer by Luke Kennard, but the Thunder pulled to 69-68 on a basket by Holmgren. Another buzzer-beater, this one an 8-footer by Dyson Daniels, gave Atlanta a 74-70 lead at halftime.
Oklahoma City took control early in the third quarter, outscoring Atlanta 30-11 for a 100-85 lead with 5:43 left. Gilgeous-Alexander (nine points) and Lu Dort (six points) sparked the run.
Atlanta got as close as 106-103 on a three-point play by Kennard. But the Thunder scored the next seven points to take a 113-103 lead into the fourth.
The Hawks kept it close after that. A 3-pointer by Zacchariw Risacher cut the Oklahoma City lead to 129-125 with 4:36 left.
Hawks: Host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday.
Thunder: Host the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Navigating Senior Care, Estate Planning, & Funeral Planning Read morePeace of Mind with a Piece of Cake
Dirk van Ulden said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.