Minnesota Timberwolves @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Tuesday, December 31, 2024 at 8:00 PM ET
Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK | Game ID: 22400452
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
OKC 21 25 43 24 113MIN 24 28 23 30 105
ESPN UpdateESPN Update
Gilgeous-Alexander scores 40 to lead Thunder past Timberwolves 113-105
OKLAHOMA CITY -- — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied to win their seventh straight game, beating the Minnesota Timberwolves 113-105 on Tuesday night.
Isaiah Hartenstein added 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Lu Dort and Jalen Williams each had 14 points for the Thunder (27-5), which trailed 52-46 at halftime before outscoring Minnesota 43-23 in the third quarter to take a double-digit lead.
Anthony Edwards had 20 points and seven rebounds to lead Minnesota (17-15). His two free throws with 2:03 left cut the Thunder lead to 106-103, but Gilgeous-Alexander answered with a 3-pointer to reach the 40-point plateau for the third time in five games and extend the lead to 109-103.
Naz Reid scored 19 points, and Mike Conley added 16 for the Timberwolves, who had won three in a row.
Takeaways Timberwolves: Minnesota was in control until the second half, when the Timberwolves withered under Oklahoma City's pressure defense and blew a 12-point lead in the third quarter.
Thunder: Defense and Gilgeous-Alexander's playmaking ability kept Oklahoma City in the game until his teammates found their shooting touch in the second half.
Key moment Minnesota got three consecutive 3-pointers from Mike Conley to build a 65-53 lead with 8:30 left in the third quarter. But Oklahoma City went on a 36-10 run and ended the quarter with a 89-75 lead. Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 19 points in the quarter.
Key stat Oklahoma City forced 24 turnovers, including 16 steals. The majority came in the second half when the Thunder clawed their way back into the game.
Up next The Timberwolves host Boston, and the Thunder host the Clippers on Thursday night.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
OKCAM A. Mitchell
AW A. Wiggins
CW C. Wallace
IH I. Hartenstein
IJ I. Joe
JW J. Williams
JW Jal. Williams
JW Jay. Williams
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
MINAE A. Edwards
DD D. DiVincenzo
JM J. McDaniels
JM J. Minott
JR J. Randle
MC M. Conley
NA N. Alexander-Walker
NR N. Reid
RG R. Gobert
OKC/MIN the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur