Two-time NBA All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way for the OKC Thunder in their 126-119 victory over the Dallas Mavericks at home on Thursday. “SGA” stuffed the stat sheet in the rebound victory.
OKC was coming off a tough loss to the Indiana Pacers in their previous game. He turned in a deep performance on both ends of the court against the former Mavericks, who played without resident superstar Luka Doncic due to a hamstring issue.
At at the forefront of the Thunder attack was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who had 31 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals in 37 minutes of play. It was his second straight 30-plus point game and his 10th in the last 12 matches.
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Below is the full stat line of the 25-year-old star point guard coming out of the University of Kentucky against the Mavericks on Thursday:
Gilgeous-Alexander’s standout performance helped offset a big night for Mavericks star guard Kyrie Irving, who also had a ball game with 36 points and a game-high 12 assists to cushion Doncic’s absence.
The Thunder also got quality production from Jalen Williams, who finished with 27 points and three blocks and Josh Giddey with 18 points and five assists.
The game was close throughout, but the Thunder held it together with their defense forcing the Mavericks into 30 turnovers and then regaining their scoring in the third quarter to create some distance.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander proud of his team which held strong against the Mavericks
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is proud of how the OKC Thunder handled their tough game against the Dallas Mavericks at home on Thursday. He pointed out that although they were far from fluid collectively, they managed to come together and achieve the victory 126-119.
The two-time NBA All-Star led the way for the Thunder, but got plenty of support from the rest of the team on both ends of the court, with four other players scoring in double figures and forcing the Mavericks into telling mistakes.
In the post-match on-field interview, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shared his thoughts on their performance against Dallas and what it did for them.
He said:
“Persistence. Resilience. We have a game plan that we like to follow every night. We [frayed] a little bit tonight but we did enough to get the W.”
Victory improved the Thunder’s record to 46-20tying the reigning NBA champions Denver Nuggets for the best record in the Western Conference.
OKC next plays on Saturday, where it will face the Memphis Grizzlies on the road.
