The Oklahoma City Thunder were finally able to overcome their fourth quarter and overtime woes in a 123-119 win over the Chicago Bulls.
Entering the game, the Thunder were ranked 28th in net rating in the fourth quarter, being outscored by 12.9 points per 100 possessions. It felt like the Thunder were going to exorcise their fourth-quarter demons in the opening minutes of the final 12-minute frame.
The Thunder were up by 10 points with eight minutes remaining in the game. Then, just like a lot of Thunder games this season, the Bulls made their run to close the deficit.
In the final eight minutes of regulation, the Bulls finished on a 23-15 run to give the Thunder home crowd flashbacks to their last game. As soon as the Thunder lead felt comfortable, the Bulls were able to methodologically work their way back into the game.
Zach LaVine scored 12 points in the final 12 minutes of the game and was able to force overtime.
It was deja vu for Thunder fans this season: the young squad was able to surprisingly catch a team off guard and grow a lead before eventually squandering it late in the game.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wouldn’t let that result in another loss though as he scored 11 of his 30 points in the final 17 minutes of the game. After not being able to score against the Denver Nuggets in their last overtime game, Gilgeous-Alexander was not going to repeat history.
The biggest moment of the game came with 27.1 seconds left in overtime.
After Gilgeous-Alexander was able to bait veteran DeMar DeRozan into fouling him from beyond the perimeter, he was able to hit all three free throws for the go-ahead points.
“When I seen the shot clock that low, I knew I was going to try to shoot a three, so I tried to set him up,” said Gilgeous-Alexander.
With MVP chants growing louder by the free-throw attempt, Gilgeous-Alexander was able to seal the deal at the charity stripe.
With the win, the Thunder were able to snap a three-game losing streak and give former head coach Billy Donovan a parting gift of another loss.
For the Bulls, their star trio led the way. DeRozan scored 30 points with half of those points coming in the fourth quarter and overtime. LaVine scored 27 points. Nikola Vucevic finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds.
Let’s take a look at Thunder player grades.