Thunder Unable to Handle Clippers Hot Shooting, Lose 127-105

An outpouring of 3-pointers late in the third quarter helped the Clippers cruise past the Thunder.

In the second of two-straight matchups, the Oklahoma City Thunder took on the Clippers in Los Angeles. Coming in this game having defeated the Clippers in the last matchup, the Thunder had set themselves up to surpass .500. However, the Clippers put an end to that as they willed their way past the Thunder with hot shooting, winning 127-105.

Playing without Paul George, who injured his knee in the last matchup, Kawhi Leonard scored 15 points in the first quarter on 7-of-7 shooting. His jump shot was automatic and he was the sole reason the Clippers had a 39-29 first quarter lead. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander got into double-figures in the first quarter himself, scoring ten points on 4-of-6 shooting.

While the second quarter was a sloppy quarter, it negatively impacted the Clippers more than the Thunder. The Thunder held the Clippers to only 18 points.

Though Leonard had an incredible, efficient first quarter, Gilgeous-Alexander led all scorers by halftime with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting. The game was tied up at 54 apiece at the break as the Thunder were resilient and didn’t let the game get away as they trailed.

The offense picked back up in the third quarter for the Clippers, though. Leonard picked back up his scoring as he got up to 30 points on 12-of-14 shooting. Gilgeous-Alexander remained right with him in the scoring battle with 30 points through three frames.

A hot finish in the third quarter from the Clippers gave them a 92-80 lead heading into the final frame.

Despite the effort from the Thunder’s trio of Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey and Jalen Williams to carry their offense through the first three frames, the late quarter push drug into the fourth quarter, where the Clippers continued pouring down 3-pointers.

The offense was too much, and the Clippers pushed the game out of reach early in the fourth quarter, wrapping this game up early.
Gilgeous-Alexander, through three quarters, racked up 30 points on 10-of-15 shooting. He attempted to go check in midway through the fourth quarter – at the same time he would normally check in – but head coach Mark Daigneault waved him off and the game was essentially wrapped form there.

Williams remained solid during this stretch, as he finished with 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Giddey completed things for the trio with 18 points of his own on 8-of-15 shooting.

For LA, it was a dose of different guys, but Leonard and Nic Batum were killers as they began to pull away with the game.

The Clippers, of course, finished the game with the 127-105 win while their offense didn’t slow down once sparked late in the third. The Clippers shot 18-of-37 on 3-pointers en route to their win. 

Despite the loss, the Thunder still won the season series over the Clippers, having won three of the four games between the two teams. However, the Thunder still fall past .500, as their record drops to 36-37, right after they finally reached .500. 

The Thunder return to action tomorrow night against the Lakers, the second game of this road back-to-back. 

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