OKLAHOMA City Thunder pulled away from second quarter onwards to wallop Phoenix Suns, 120-107, in Game 2 of the NBA Western Conference first round series on Wednesday night (Thursday in the Philippines) in Oklahoma City.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander spearheaded the offense with 37 points, including a perfect 9-of-9 shooting from the free throw shooting, as the Thunder seized a 2-0 edge in the best-of-seven series.
Jalen Williams added 19 markers before he exited in the third quarter due to a hamstring injury, while Chet Holmgren and Ajay Mitchell tallied 19 and 14 points, respectively, for OKC.
Holding to a slim 30-29 lead after the opening quarter, the Thunder started to create separation from the Suns in the second period en route to a 65-57 halftime advantage.
The Thunder then went on a massive run in the third quarter as they stretch the lead to 100-77. The Suns responded with a huge fourth-quarter run to cut the deficit to 100-110, but timely hits from OKC sealed the win.
Dillon Brooks top-scored for the Suns with 30 points, Devin Booker added 22 markers, while Filipino-American guard Jalen Green and Royce O’Neale had 21 and 16, respectively.
At Detroit, Cade Cunningham had 27 points, 11 assists and six rebounds to lead the top-seeded Pistons to a 98-83 win over eighth-seeded Orlando Magic, evening their first-round series at 1-1.
Detroit, which have not won a playoff homecourt game since 2008, dominated the third quarter, turning a tie game into a rout by outscoring the Magic 38-16 in the period with six players scoring at least five points.
Tobias Harris scored 16 points, Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson had 11 each, and Duncan Robertson and Isaiah Stewart each scored 10 markers for the Pistons.
Jalen Suggs scored 19 points and Paolo Banchero had 18 for the Magic. Franz Wagner and Desmond Bane had 12 points apiece and Wendell Carter Jr. was limited to three points on 1-of-6 shooting./PN
