Between good defense and clumsiness on each side, the start of the match was timid and baskets were rare in the first five minutes. Then Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dominates the Knicks and the Thunder takes a lead at the end of the first quarter (17-31).
Isaiah Joe, for his part, cuts up New York's defense, either at 3-points, or with his cuts towards the basket, perfectly read by Isaiah Hartenstein. The twenty-point mark was quickly reached in the second quarter. Everything is too easy offensively for the leaders of the Western Conference, who almost killed the match at the break (43-70).
Karl-Anthony Towns tries, with his activity and his baskets, to restart his team in the third quarter but Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder are too strong and the Knicks are powerless defensively (74-102).
The last quarter is not really of interest, the two coaches having decided to open their bench, and Oklahoma City having been decidedly one or even two tones above its evening opponent (101-126).
WHAT TO REMEMBER
– The Thunder’s offensive demonstration. The shock did not occur. After narrowly losing to Cleveland, in a high-level meeting, Oklahoma City continued its momentum and evolved to heights inaccessible for the exhausted Knicks at the moment. It was too easy offensively with a nice 14/27 at 3-pts. The Knicks never managed to limit their opponent's good shots and were only subjected to the movements and skill of the Thunder throughout the meeting.
– The great release of Isaiah Joe. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was still brilliant with 39 points, but that's typical for one of the favorites for the MVP award this season. On the other hand, we expected less from Isaiah Joe's performance. He scored 23 points in the first period and disgusted the Knicks with his winning shots or his cuts towards the circle, with the good reading and good passes of Isaiah Hartenstein. He finished with 31 points at 11/16 on the shoot and 8/11 on 3-pts.
– Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby missed their meeting. If the defense of Tom Thibodeau's players suffered greatly, so did the attack. Only Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns seemed to weigh in. Above all, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges did not exist. The first finished with 4 points – all scored after the break – at 2/8 on the shoot, while the second did worse with no points on his score! Despite his nine attempts at shooting, the former Suns player never found the target of the match…
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
