Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's 38 points lead Thunder Kings 127-113 – Winnipeg Free Press

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 38 points, Jalen Williams added 32 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Sacramento Kings 127-113 on Sunday.

Gilgeous-Alexander made 15 of 26 shots and had seven assists, while Williams made 13 of 20 shots and had nine assists and eight rebounds for the Thunder. Oklahoma City beat the Kings for the first time in three games this season.

“SGA (Gilgeus-Alexander) played like an MVP candidate,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “We threw the kitchen sink at him and he still scored 38 points. Then Jalen Williams really came up big. I say older because he was only 32, but he was very effective all night.

Lou Dort had 17 points and nine rebounds, and Chet Holmgren added 14 points for the Thunder, who scored 30 points off 14 Kings turnovers.

Oklahoma City suffered a 146-111 loss at Dallas on Saturday.

“I thought we were a lot more aggressive today than we were yesterday,” Thunder coach Mark Dagno said. “I thought, guys, it's not about responding to one game, but it's definitely about recognizing where our standards are and getting the car back on track when we're not up to par. I thought the guys did a great job today.”

Domantas Sabonis had 21 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds for the Kings, his second straight triple-double and fourth in six games this month. It was his 17th triple-double of the season and 49th of his career.

Malik Monk led the Kings with 26 points.

De'Aaron Fox, who averages nearly 27 points per game, scored 15 points on 6-17 shooting for the Kings.

“I thought Lou did a good job with it, especially in the first half,” Dagno said. “We've got it, we're really in control there. He turned against us. He has been hitting the ball brilliantly this season. … He's obviously given us trouble in the past, but I thought we did a good job for him today — Lou and then everybody else helped.”

Gilgeous-Alexander, the league's No. 2 scorer, scored 31 points per game, scoring 15 points on 6-for-8 shooting in the first quarter. Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams each scored 19 points to help them take a 67-57 halftime lead.

The third was controlled by lightning. A 3-pointer by Dort followed by a layup by Williams put Oklahoma City up 84-66. A tight dribble by Gilgeous-Alexander sent Harrison Barnes the wrong way, then Gilgeous-Alexander stepped to the baseline and hit a short jumper to make it 88-66. It was the last basket of a 16-0 run. The Lightning led 100-83 heading into the fourth.

The Kings cut their deficit to eight in the fourth, but the Lightning remained in control. A Gilgeous-Alexander 3-pointer with less than four minutes left gave the Lightning a 121-108 lead.

“We came out really well today,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I think it affected the rest of the night. We played to our essence from the jump.”

NEXT UP

Kings: Visit Phoenix on Tuesday night.

Thunder: Visit Orlando on Tuesday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA