Thunder clinch first playoff spot since 2020, beat Knicks on Gilgeous-Alexander’s jumper
NEW YORK (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made the go-ahead jumper from the corner with 2.6 seconds left, sending the Oklahoma City Thunder to the playoffs for the first time since 2020 with a 113-112 victory over the New York Knicks on Sunday night.
Josh Giddey had 16 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists for Oklahoma City, which moved back into sole possession of first place in the Western Conference at 52-22 with its second straight win.
“Great accomplishment for the organization,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “I couldn’t be happier for the team and for the organization. And now we’ve got to continue to sharpen our blade down the stretch here (to) prepare ourselves.”
It was Giddey’s third career triple-double — all against the Knicks. He scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, when the Thunder outscored the Knicks 38-27.
“It’s the most famous arena in the world,” Giddey said. “It’s a special place to play. (Whether) triple-doubles happen or not, I just try to go out there, play the right way, play the game how it should be played and those things kind of just happen. It’s a fun place to play.”
Jalen Williams led all scorers with 33 points and Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 19.
Jalen Brunson scored 30 points but missed the potential winning jumper in another tough loss for the Knicks, who fell in overtime Friday in San Antonio. Deuce McBride added 19 and Donte DiVincenzo scored 15.
With the Knicks trailing 111-110 with 18 seconds left, Brunson converted a layup to give the Knicks the lead. After a timeout, Gilgeous-Alexander knocked down a turnaround mid-range jumper over McBride before Brunson missed a 16-footer at the buzzer.
Isaiah Hartenstein had 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Knicks, while Josh Hart added 13 points and 15 rebounds.
“It hurts,” Hartenstein said of New York’s back-to-back losses. “We’ve (had) two games where we had great shots. That’s kind of the more disappointing thing.”
Trailing 50-46, New York opened the third quarter with a 14-5 run. Brunson scored eight points in the spurt, and McBride and DiVincenzo each drilled a 3.
New York extended its lead to 75-65 after DiVincenzo’s 3 with 5:24 remaining in the quarter. McBride’s layup with 2:54 left capped a pretty passing sequence to extend the advantage to 12.
In all, New York outscored Oklahoma City 39-25 in the period to take an 85-75 lead.
The Thunder responded with a 15-5 spurt in the first 2:41 of the fourth quarter to tie the game at 90-all. The run was capped by Giddey’s floater.
The teams traded baskets for the remainder of the game. Brunson tied it 104 with a 3, but Williams’ 3 allowed the Thunder to regain the lead.
Gilgeous-Alexander returned to the lineup after sitting out Oklahoma City’s previous two games with a left quadriceps contusion. New York remained without Julius Randle (dislocated right shoulder), OG Anunoby (right elbow injury management), and Mitchell Robinson (sprained left ankle).
“I felt like I was ready,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “If I didn’t feel so I wouldn’t be out there. Didn’t have my best game, clearly. But yeah, I felt pretty good.”
UP NEXT:
Thunder: Visits Philadelphia on Tuesday night.
Knicks: Visit Miami on Tuesday night.
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