OKC Thunder Outlast New York Knicks, Win 117-107

Aaron Wiggins scored 15 fourth-quarter points on perfect shooting. Oklahoma City has won 14 straight games.

Jan 3, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins (21) blocks a shot by New York Knicks guard Josh Hart (3) during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the New York Knicks 117-107 in a clutch-time thriller. New York scored 41 second-half points after exploding for 66 in the first half. The Thunder has won 14 consecutive regular-season games.

Aaron Wiggins splashed a wide-open triple to tie the game 97-97 midway through the fourth quarter. He drained another long ball two possessions later, putting the Thunder up by a point with four minutes remaining, and converted an and-one layup from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander the next time down the floor.

Gilgeous-Alexander made a short pull-up jumper and found Wiggins for another 3-pointer, as Oklahoma City went on a 10-0 run within 70 seconds. The Thunder held on from there.

Gilgeous-Alexander led all scorers with 33 points on 12-for-26 shooting, adding seven assists, four rebounds, a steal and a block.

Jalen Williams recorded 20 points on 8-for-17 shooting, five assists, four rebounds, two steals and a block.

Wiggins racked up 19 points on nine shots, including 15 in the fourth quarter on perfect shooting. Isaiah Hartenstein tallied four points, 14 rebounds, seven assists, a steal and a block.

Three Knicks scorers — Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby — reached at least 20 points. Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 17 points, 22 rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Statistic	Thunder	Knicks
Points	117	107
2-Pointers	29-for-57	34-for-58
3-Pointers	14-for-27	9-for-32
Free Throws	17-for-21	12-for-17
Turnovers	13	12
Offensive Rebounds	7	11

Oklahoma City started Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Hartenstein, Luguentz Dort and Cason Wallace.

New York started Brunson, Bridges, Josh Hart, Anunoby and Towns.

The Thunder won the opening tip and scored on its first possession, as Dort splashed a wide-open corner triple from a short-rolling Hartenstein. The big man found Dort again for a cutting layup three minutes later in a wild offensive stretch, with both teams shooting 7-for-11 from the field at the game's initial timeout.

New York scored its first five field goals from five different players, capped by Bridges putting in an uncontested layup after hitting Gilgeous-Alexander in the face inadvertently.

Oklahoma City's No. 1 option remained unfazed throughout the first frame. Gilgeous-Alexander racked up four driving layups and a pull-up triple during the quarter, reaching 14 points by its conclusion. He knocked down two free throws with under a second remaining to give the Thunder a 33-30 lead.

Bridges nailed back-to-back 3-pointers across quarters, a loud stretch in what ended up being a 19-point first half on 8-for-14 shooting. He made all four paint attempts, including an athletic putback layup after Brunson missed a driving floater.

New York caught fire in the second quarter's closing minutes, driving at the Thunder's interior defense repeatedly without Hartenstein in the game. The Knicks outscored the home team 23-10 in the second quarter's final 5:53, taking a 66-54 lead into halftime. All five of their starters shot above 50% from the field during the first half.

Oklahoma City began the third quarter with an 8-0 run — capped by Jalen Williams swishing a three after a Wallace offensive rebound. The Knicks stopped their bleeding by funneling the ball to Towns in the post, as the big man threw down a powerful dunk and drew two free throws on consecutive trips down the floor.

Anunoby flew for an and-one fastbreak dunk eight minutes into the quarter, extending New York's lead back to 12 points with four minutes remaining. Gilgeous-Alexander ended a streak of nine straight misses with a fastbreak layup over two defenders. The Knicks led 88-80 with 12 minutes to go.

Oklahoma City takes on the defending champion Boston Celtics this Sunday, Jan. 5 at 2:30 p.m. CST.

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